The Zerk Chronicles 1 - A Strange World
by LionPrankster
Summary: What happens when a 16-year-old teenager finds himself in a world full of ponies? And dangers? War, Love, Drama...got them all right here. Rated M for strong language, violence and possible lemons in later chapters. (I really suck at summaries Lolz)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N Hi there everyone. LionPrankster here. I decided to write this fic, my very first one. I also decided to jave the titles of the chapters reference some songs that I will name at the end of the chapter (the songs have no connection with the action, but in the future they might). Constructive review are apreciated, while flames will be used to keep the fire burning and me nice and cozy :D**

**Any ideas are welcomed. Send them in a PM.**

**Please note that I do not own MLP:FIM, or the songs for that matter. :D**

**Also, the chapters might be quite big and the updates kinda slow because I want to deliver quality as well as quantity (plus there is school in my schedule).**

**Hope you'll enjoy and let the adventure begin.  
><strong>

Chapter 1 : Enter Ponyville

Hi. My name is Zerk. Daniel Zerk. I am here to tell you my story. You may like it, you may not, but I will tell it anyway.

I am a normal 16-year-old teenager. Nothing special. I lived a normal life and had some friends and a good family. I enjoyed it, even if it was kind of boring. But, one day, it all changed.

It was a hot summer day, and me and my family were returning from a camping trip. We were very exausted. When we got home, we decided to just hit the hay. I went in my room to sleep. I only woke up to the sound of the car. I got up and looked on the window. There they go again. I went downstairs and into the kitchen. My family left a note on the fridge saying: " We went in town. Since you were sleeping, we dicided to not wake you up. There is cake in the fridge. Love, mom."

Great. Now I am home alone...again, I told myself. This was going on for quite some time. My parents and my sister leaving and returning from the town. And I just stood home. But I liked it that way. More freedom for me. And cake. Who does not love cake, right?

However, that is when the bell rang. I looked outside, and only saw some kind of mirror on the ground. But there was no sign of humans anywhere. They must have been preety fast I picked it up, and looked in it. All I could see was myself. But, as I got in my room, and still looking in the strange mirror, a massive red eye appeared and then I fainted.

I woke up quite some time later. I was thinking about what the hell could that have been, when I realised that I was fucking free-falling. Yeah...that is the moment I started panicking. Because of the fear of the death that was unnavoidable...I fainted again.

The next thing I know, I woke up in a bed. It was very soft and puffy. I opened my eyes, and looked around the room. I was in a round room, with some windows and at the far end, a door that looked closed. I looked at the bed. It was a piece of a cloud. That's when I heard the door open. And I almost fainted...again...when I saw who, or what entered the room. In the room entered a pony, a cyan pony. She had rainbow mane and tail, and very beautyful eyes. She looked at me with big eyes, before she said:

" Oh good. You're awake."

" Yeah, I am. But where the hell am I and who are you?"

" Wait...you can talk?" the pony said.

" Well, my mouth is moving and words are coming out" I said in a sarcastic tone. " Now who are you?" I asked.

" Hahaha." the pony started laughin very amused. " My name is Rainbow Dash. You are quite funny. Who and what are you?"

" Wait, wait, wait... am I by any chance sleeping?"

" You look preety awake to me" Rainbow Dash said.

" Right. Not a bad sense of humor you got there yourself" I said. " Well, my name is Zerk. Daniel Zerk. But you can call me Dan or Daniel. And where am I?" I asked.

" Pleasure to meet you, Dan. You are in my house, in my bed, to be more exact." Dash said.

" Well...where exactly is your house?" I asked.

" On a cloud over Equestria." she said. " But how did you get here? I saw you falling and I caught you...but I can't understand where have you fallen off."

"I have no idea either" I said.

Rainbow Dash thought for a moment and then said:

" I know somepony that might be able to help us. She will surely know how you got here. Come on."

I got up and followed her outside, on the cloud. She took flight and said:

"Follow me."

"I don't think I can" I told her.

" Why not?" she asked.

"I don't have wings so I can't fly."

She looked at me as if I was mad, but then said:

"Hmm...that makes this a little harder than I thought" , and then smiled a wicked smile and said: " In that case, let me give you a hoof."

She came back up and picked me up and carried me down. Then she said:

" Thank you for flying with Dash airlines. Hope you had a good flight." She laughed a little before saying:  
>" Now let's get going."<p>

We walked for some time. I saw other ponies, some pegassei and some unicorns on our way to god knows where. After quite a walk and not much chat...we arrived a great building. It looked very familliar. That is when I realised I knew this place. It was the world from My little pony. I used to watch that when I was a kid. I still do so sometime. And this big building was the library in which Twilight Sparkle, a purple unicorn with dark purple mane that had a pink line, and Spike, a purple baby dragon, lived in. Just then Rainbow Dash knocked on the door. The door opened and Twilight came out.

"Hi there Rainbow Dash. And who is your friend over here? " she asked.

" My name is Zerk Daniel. But you can call me Dan."

" Alright Dan. Pleasure to meet you. I am Twilight Sparkle. Now what can I help you with Dash?" she asked.

" Actually, Dan is the one who needs help."

" Okay then. Come in" Twilight said.

I was somehow amazed that this ponies where so relaxed in the presence of a human. We reached a table and we sat down. The Twilight said:

" Okay. So what can I do to help?"

"You could tell me how I got here, because I have no idea how. All I remeber was that I looked in a mirror and saw a red eye. And then I was falling."

"No way" Twilight said looking with her eyes at me, as her jaw dropped.

"What?" I asked.

"I have to send a message. Please come back tomorrow, since I have a lot of questions and very little time now" she said. Then she pushed us out and closed the door.

After we got outside I said:

"That was strange."

"Yeah. It is not like Twilight to get so excited and hurried like that" Dash said, but then shrugged it off. " Hey, Dan, you want to see the town?" she asked me.

Since I had nothing better to do, I said:

"Okay. After you."

We walked in the center of the town. There, I saw a pink pony, that looked like she was on a sugar overload. She just jumped around, talking to everyone ( or everypony). And then she came right to us and started talking:

"Hi. My name is Pinkie Pie. I haven't seen you around here. Are you new? OMFG, you are a human. You sure must be new. We have to have a party. Do you like parties, cuz I do. Be at the my place at eight. Nice talking to you. Bye."

And then she ran off. I was just staying there stoned. Rainbow Dash just started laughing and said:

"Don't worry. She is always like that. But you must go to the party. She lives over there" and she showed with her hoof at a pink building.

"Umm...okay" I said.

"Hey, I have an idea. Why don't we get you some clothes. This ones look preety used" she said.

I looked at myself and realised I was in my thorn clothes from camping. They were thorn because me and my dad ran into a wolf, and he ran after us for quite some time, before we could lose it. I followed Dash around the place until we reached a boutique. Dash entered and said:

"Hey Rarity. Are you here?"

"Be right there" a white unicorn with purple mane said.

She came around and said:

" Oh Dash. Is only you. But who is this handsome human?"

Me, handsome? What is wrong with this ponies? And why are they so fucking relaxed around humans?

" His name is Daniel Zerk" Dash said. "And he got here somehow, and looks like he needs some of your clothes." Rainbow Dash added, eying me a little.

"A pleasure to meet you Dan. My name is Rarity."

" Very pleased to meet you" I answered.

"Okay...so, let's see what have we got here" she said. She begun walking around me, and making some measurements. What am I saying? A lot of measurements. She went on fo a while before saying:  
>"Okay. I got all I need. Come back tomorrow. And since this is the first time I make some clothes for humans, it is free." Then she turned around and called: " Applejack, Fluttershy, come here. I want you to meet someone."<p>

An orange pony with yellow mane came and a yellow pegassus with pink mane flew in the room.

The orange pony talked first:

"Hey there, sugarcube. The name's Applejack. If you need some place to work, just come to the Sweet Apple Acres, and I'll find somthing for ya."

"The name's Daniel. Nice to meet you."

"H-hi. M-my name is Fluttershy. I-it's good to meet you." the yellow pegassus said in a shy voice.

"I am Dan. Very happy to meet you" I said.

"Well Dan" Rainbow Dash said " now that you met everypony, what do you think?"

" It is very nice arround here. I like it. It so quiet and free around here" I said.

"Well...it is...most of the times. Hey, do you have anywhere to stay?" Rainbow Dasha asked.

"No. Not really" I answered a little embarased.

" Well...there is an old house on the hill under my cloud. You could stay there. If you want, I'll help you make it look as new" Dash said, not looking at me.

" Umm...sure, thanks" I answered. We walked towards the hill, before I asked:  
>" Dash...how come ponies are so friendly around humans."<p>

"To tell you the truth Dan. I don't know. I suppose it is the magic in Equestria. Everypony is friends with everypony, and you can feel if a pony, or person in your case, has a good or bad intention" Dash answered.

"Not what I meant. I meant to humans in general. There must be very few if at all in Equestria" I said.

"Ohh...I don't know. So, any idea to whar to do before going to the party?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"No, not really. You?" I asked, looking at her.

She smiled mischeviously and said:

" I might have a few."

**A/N So...ummm..thanks for reading. Leave me a review, and if you see any mistakes (grammar or language) send me a PM.**

**Song : "Enter Sandman" by Metallica**

**Quote of the day: " Dude, STFU and have a Merry Christmas and a fucking present!" (me to a friend of mine, while giving him a Christmas present and he kept saying he was sorry for not buying me anything).**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, Over and Out.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**  
><strong>Here is the second chapter. I want to thank to DaPonyReader for the very first review. I did make this chapter a little bit longer, and also I will try to make the titles of the chapter have connection with the songs they refer. Enjoy.<strong> 

Chapter 2 : No.1 Party

I followed Dash to the hill where she flew me off. There, I saw a very old house, that I hadn't seen before. It was an old brick house, built in a yellowish color.  
>The roof, in a very old orange color, had some holes. One of it rather big.<p>

"That is the house I told you about. I know it looks kinda bad, but I'll help you get it back on its hooves. Tomorrow, I'll help you fix the roof" Dash said.

"Thanks, but it's really not necessary. I can do it myself." After all, I usually fixed the roof back at home, mainly because my dad was afraid of heights. I could do it here too.

"There is no problem Zerk. That's what friends are for" Rainbow Dash said with a smile.

Friends. A word rather strange for me, with a meaning ever stranger. Don't get me wrong, I had friends where I lived before, but they never offered to help, not even close. Now I begun to wonder what exactly a friend meant. Maybe the strange thing that was happening to me, the said coming in Ponyville, might turn out to be interesting indeed. On a moment decision  
>I gave Rainbow Dash a hug, and then looked around embarassed. I said in a little voice:<p>

"Sorry 'bout that"

She just stood there, with the smile still on her face and said:

"Aaaanyway...why don't we go inside, so you can see the interior too?"

"Right. Lead the way." I said, happy that she changed the subject.

We entered through a door, and into a small hallway. It had some pictures on the walls. On our right, there was a room with a sofa, made of green material. On the far end of the room was a fireplace full of old ash and with a horn on it. The horn was kind of strange. It looked like an unicorn horn, but twisted around. Strange indeed but I shrugged it off. On the right of the fireplace, a window that hadn't been washed for a long time, offered a beautiful sight of the village and the forest near it.

"Hey Dash, what's the name of the forest there?" I asked.

"That's the Everfree Forest. Fluttershy lives there." she answered looking at the horn.

On the other side of the fireplace, there was a small shelf with books. They needed dusting. The roof, however, was comoletely inexistent.

"Hey Dash. I found over what room that big hole is" I said.

She looked up, and saw no roof. She said:

"Nothing that can't be repaired. Let's move on."

We went back in the hallway, and found the bedroom. A nice room, with a bed made of cloud, and a small window. It was a little cleaner than the rest of the house, and the roof was whole. Just a little dusting and all will be very clean, I thought. Dash, like she read my mind, said:

"Open the window."

I went to it and opened it. Dash then beat her wings and dusted the room in a second. After that, she said with a smile:

"And now you have a place to sleep, until we repair this."

"Heh heh... thanks" I said.

"Don't mention it. Now, for what I know, the rest of the house, meaning the study, the kitchen and the bathroom are in ruin. They would need rebuilding" Dash said looking around a little. "Okay...now, that you found a house that would look very nice when it's done, what you wanna do?"

"Umm...no idea. What else can you do around here?"

That is when I saw a glimmer in her eyes. Then she said:  
>"Well, I suppose we could prank some ponies. I do that every day. But in two it should be even more fun."<p>

So that's what she meant with that wicked smile from earlier. I suppose a joke or two won't kill anyone.

"Okay then. Who shall we prank first?" I asked.

"Wait...you...want to prank ponies with me?" she said in an voice full of incredulity.

"Yeah. It should be really fun. I love the look on their faces when they see what's in for them" I said rather amused.

"Wow..." she said looking at me.

"Ummm...wow what?" I asked a little confused.

"Wow you..." She answered.

"I don't really get it" I said.

"You are actually the first person that said he enjoyes jokes and pranks as much as I do. When I said it earlier, I thought you will say no or you'll just find something else to do. But...heh heh heh...you actually like pranks. Who would have guessed?" she said laughing a little.

While she talked, I looked around and found a pillow, and hit her in the face.

She looked stunned at me for a second and I said between laughs:

"You should see the look on your face"

That is when she hit me with the same pillow across the face, with a wild grin on her. She said:

"Well, if you want war, then you'll get it". Then she screamed : " Pillow fight!".

I found another pillow and we fought for a couple of minutes, before I put a finger on her forehead. She just looked at me and I said:

"I want to tell you something, but you'll have to come closer so I can whisper it to you."

She looked confused and then smiled and came closer. Then I whispered in her ear:

"I just wanted to say that you are a great pillow fighter and... Tag! You're it!"

Then I sprinted past her and out of the house. She came after me two seconds after with the same wicked smile, and tried to tackle me, while saying:

"Oh no you don't. It's on!"

And she ran after me around the hill a couple of times, before I tired and stopped. When she saw that I stopped, she tried to tackle me and I just side-stepped her. She flew straight in a bush. She came out one second later, laughing and with little braches and leaves in her mane. She came to me and said:

"That's the most fun I had in ages. How did you know I liked Tag? And how did you know I was gonna tackle you?"

" I didn't. But that was what I would have done. Now...any more ideas that would be less covered with braches and leaves?" I said gesturing at her mane. She just looked at herself, shook her mane and laughed again, before saying:

"Not really. But the party starts soon. You might want to talk to Applejack and see if she has some bricks and paint. You could work at Sweet Apple Acres for them. And meet me in the town in a half an hour so I can show you to Pinkie Pie's house, the Sugarcube Corner."

"Okay. See you then" I answered with a smile.

She smiled and flew up to her cloud. After she left, I let out a happy sigh and made my way to the Sweet Apple Acres.  
>When I arrived, I called:<p>

" Oy, Applejack! Are you here?"

After a couple of seconds, a head popped out of the farm and said:

" Hey there sugarcube! What brings ya here?" It was indeed Applejack, with a smile on her face.

"Came to ask for some bricks and orange paint. If you have any around here. I could work for them." I said.

" Sure we have, sugarcube." She went back to the barn, and brought a weel-barrel of bricks and a bucket of orange paint with a brush. Then she said:

"Be here tomorrow afternoon. A lot of apples to harvest, sugarcube. Now I have to go and prepare for the party." And she left.

I took the bricks and paint back to the house, and returned with the weel-barrel. I left it outside the barn and went on my way to the town. I waited for a couple of minutes, before I saw a rainbow blure flying on the sky. I yelled:

" Rainbow Dash! Down here!"

She must have heard me, because she landed right beside me and said:

"Hi there. Ready for the party?"

Just then I felt my clothes move and they kind of repaired themselves and cleaned. I looked around a saw Twilight. She must have done it.

"Hi and thanks Twilight. Now I am ready Rainbow Dash" I said.

"No problem. Let's go" Twilight said.

"Good. Follow me" Rainbow Dash said and started towards a very pink building a little far off. That and the fact there were party lights around it. How obvious. Just like Pinkie Pie, I told myself.  
>We were there in an instant. We entered and saw just about everypony was there. And there was a baby dragon at the entrance.<p>

"Spike. I remeber telling you to take care of the library" Twilight said looking at the dragon.

"Well, everypony is here, sooo...I thought I should come too" Spike said.

"He is right Twilight. Leave him be for tonight" I said to her. Then I turned to Spike and said:

"Very good to meet you, Spike. I'm Dan."

"Nice to meet you. Have fun" he told me. I was just about to go to see what was around here, when he stopped me and said:

"Just don't eat red cupcakes. Pinkie puts hot sauce in them."

"Right, thanks" I said. Then I returned to looking in the room. I saw Applejack at the bar, Pinkie was using some kind of "party canon" and Rarity had a conversation with Fluttershy. I decided to go to the bar. There I ordered some beer and drank it. It was quite good, so I got another one. Just then, Pinkie Pie came to me and started rambling:

"Hey there, Dan. DOYOULIKETHEPARTY?AREYOUNOTEXCITED?IAMEXCITED!IHAVENEVERBEENSOEXCITEDSINCEISAWYOUWERENEWHERE? So you like the party?"

"Ummm...yeah. It is quite nice. What music are you going to play?"

"No idea. The pony there" she gestured to the stage "chooses the music. Why?"

"No reason. I just wanted to know" I said looking at the dance floor.

"Oooooowwww...I know...it's Rainbow Dash, right?" she said almost too loud.

"No...I just wanted to know" I said.

"I knew it. I knew it. You like Rainbow! You like Rainbow!" she started singing.

"Pinkie stop!" I said.

She stopped mid-sentence and looked at me.

"Please stop. I don't want her to hear" I said.

"Oh, okay. Well, see you around" Pinkie said, jumping away.

"So...ya like Rainbow Dash, sugarcube?" Applejack asked.

"Wha...oh, I forgot you were here...and yes, I do" I said a little red in the face.

"Well, good luck then. A little tip. She likes to dance, both fast and slow...you should ask her for a dance. Tell me how it goes, sugarcube. Look, here she comes" AJ said pointing to Rainbow Dash, who was making her way to the bar.

Rainbow Dash came to the bar, and asked for an apple cider, and then said:

"So, how do you like the party, Dan?"

"It is awesome. Pinkie really did a good job here" I said with a smile.

Just then, the music changed to a slow song. I looked at Aj, and she looked back at me with meaning. I just told myself: just what I expected from Pinkie. Then I turned around to Rainbow Dash and said:

"Hey, Dash, will you give me the pleasure of this dance?"

"I didn't know you dance as well. Of course I will. Let's show them how's it done" she said jumping from where she was and taking my hand she dragged me to the dance floor. That went better than expected. We danced slowly to the rithm of the music. The song was slow indeed, and in the light, I observed for the first time what a beautiful face and mane she had and how good she knew to dance. She was almost as good at it as she was at pranking people or ponyes, for that matter. Then, when the dance was over and something more fast was played, Dash just started breakdancing. After two minutes she stopped and said:

"Hey Dan. Come and join me. Is not hard."

"Are you mad? I am known for the breakdancing. Make room. You know what...let's do a duet" I said.

"That is like the best idea you had today. Let's do this" she said.

And we started breakdancing. All the other ponies looked at us and clapped their hooves on the ground. We were moving in perfect sincronization. We even did some back flips, and Dash did some aerial stunts. When the song ended, we made a couple of bows to the ponies, and then went back to the bar. Pinkie Pie was there:

" How was the dance?" she asked grinning.

"Awesome! It was all like that and that and that and ...(you get it)" Rainbow Dash said while showing them every part of the dance. I laughed and looked at Aj, who just winked and looked back at Rainbow Dash.

After this, we danced some more just for fun, and a couple of hours later, when the party was over, me and Dash were walking towards the hill. When we reached my house, she stopped and said:

" I had the most fun in ages. It was awesome. I really enjoyed the night. And the dance. We should hang out more."

"I had fun too. I really enjoyed the dance" I said with a grin.

"Well...see you tomorrow. After all, you have to answer Twilight's questions, pick up a new outfit from Rarity, and I'll help you with the house. You should hit the hay. Good night, Dan" and then she flapped her wings a little.

"Indeed. Well, 'Night Rainbow Dash" I said. She smiled and flew up on her cloud.

I turned around and went in my old new house. I went on the puffy bed, took my blanket, that was under the pillows from the fight and I got into bed. In my mind there was only one thing. Question actually : Will Rainbow Dash go or not on a date with me? And with that thing in mind, I drifted to sleep.

Meanwhile, on the cloud above (3rd POV ) :

Rainbow Dash just pulled her blanket on her and tried to sleep, but one thing didn't let her. The dance from that night. It just made her smile without control. And she felt butterflyes in her stomach. With the smile on her face, and the impatience of a new day, she drifted to sleep in the end.

**Hope you liked it. The song is "No. 1 Party Anthem" by Arctic Monkeys, and is also the song that Dan and Dash dansed for the first time ( I suggest you listen to it). The second one was "Bangarang" by Skrillex (I listen to all kind of music, no judges pls :P)**

**Quote of the day: "Dude, leave the bushes alone!" as a friend of mine pushed in the snow, over some bushes. We have a very strange sense of humor (don't ask). OF course he was the next guest of the bushes HEHEHE :))). **

**Anyway, if you enjoyed leave me a review and send a PM with mistakes, if I made any.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster over and out.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi there. Here is the next chapter. My keyboard is smoking and my hands hurt, but here is it. A 3k chapter. Enjoy.**

Chapter 3 : I don't wanna miss a Dash

She dances like no other. I really like to see her breakdancing along with me. We make the unbeatable duo. I like...

KNOCK...KNOCK...KNOCK

I open my eyes and see the sun is up. I was just reliving the night before. Pinkie should throw a party more often. Or I could ask Dash to come over for a dance. I only hope she won't consider this strange. Anyway, I'll never forget what a day I had yesterday. And today, a morning with a cloudless sky. What could be better than this? Maybe some pancakes.

KNOCK...KNOCK...KNOCK

I wonder who might be. Better find out. I got up and walked to the door and opened it. Outside was none other than Rainbow Dash. And she had something in her hooves.

"Hi there, Dan. How are you today?" she asked in a very happy voice.

"I'm super. I can't wait to start the day" I answered very happy to see her. Maybe I'll ask you out today, I added in my mind.

"Me too. Here, I brought you some pancakes I made just now. I thought since you had no kitchen yet, I could just bring you some" she added and handed me a plate of pancakes. Damn, I swear she reads minds. She just made my day one thousand times better. Wait...if she can read minds, then she must have read what I said earlier. Neeeeah...impossible. Or is it? I really hope it is not possible. And so I began rambling to myself before I caught her looking at me like she was expecting something, which took me out of the daze I was in.

"Thanks a bunch. You just made my day" I said taking the plate and smelling the pancakes. "I bet they are extremely delicious" I said with a hungry grin, not taking my eyes off them.

"You can bet on that" she said laughing. "Well, after you are done eating, you should meet me at Rarity's boutique. I'll go there to...to see how are the clothes. Yeah. The clothes. Then we can start the work on this house here."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll be there in no-time. Thanks again for the pancakes" I said, my grin getting bigger, as was my hunger. I wondered what was with that gap there, but I shrugged it off.

"My pleasure. Well, see you" she said with a last smile and then in a blur of rainbow, she was gone.

I looked at the pancakes and went back in my bedroom to eat them. Very tasty pancakes with bits of apple. I still can't believe she brought me pancakes, the only thing that would make my already awesome day even more awesome. ...Well, there might be another thing too, but now is not the time nor the place.

After I ate the delicious pancakes, I decided to go to Rarity's. As I was walking on my was to Rarity, I looked around the town. Such a peaceful place. No random cars that would polute the air, no drunk people that curse anyone the first thing in the morning and the cloudless sky. I wonder why would Rainbow Dash make the sky cloudless today, I thought.

The short walk led me to the boutique. I knocked and Rarity opened the door.

"Oh, hi there Dan. Please come in." she said. "Your clothes are ready. Let me bring them."

And she went to another part of the boutique to get the clothes. I saw Rainbow Dash on a couch looking outside with a smile. She was daydreaming. I might as well prank her, I said laughing in my mind. I walked slowly, behind her, and tickled her ear, then quickly moved. She looked behind her and saw no one. She turned back, and there I was with a scary face, centimeters away from her face. She instantly jumped in the air and almost hit her head in the ceiling.

"Bwahahahaha" I began, almost falling on the ground, but with my eyes closed. I heard nothing. I opened them, and Dash was right in my face with a zombie face. I jumped a little, but then laughed and so did she. After we caught our breaths, she said:

"Good one. But I didn't see you coming"

"That is because you were daydreaming. And I couldn't miss such a chance. You should have seen your fa..."

"Here they are. How do you like them?" Rarity said out of nowhere and startled both of us. " Let's get you dressed'" she added. Her horn glew for a momen and I was dressed in the clothes she made. A Yellow T-shirt with a Rainbow on the left side of the chest, and a dark blue pair of trousers. They were jeans-like, but not quite. They looked very good...but I wonder what is with the rainbow. Rarity saw my expresion and said:

"Let me take care of that collar of your T-shirt". When she had her face close to my ear, she said: "The rainbow was Dash's idea. Don't tell her I told you." She then went back and said: " There. Now all looks perfect".

"I like them a lot. Thanks" I told Rarity. Then I turned to Rainbow Dash and I said: "What do you think?"

"I like them a lot. Especially the T-shirt" she said

"The T-shirt is my favorite too" I said with a wide smile. "Thanks again Rarity. Now Dash...meet me soon at the house. I need to talk to Twilight first. See you soon." And it was my turn to disapear in a blur.

I quickly made my way to Twilight's library. I knocked and Spike answered:

"Hey Spike. Is Twilight here?" I asked.

"Sure she is. TWILIGHT! Dan is here" Spike called.

"Let him in" I heard a voice somewhere in the back. I entered and walked around until I found Twilight. She was seated at a table, reading a book about something and taking some notes. I sat down and said:

" So, why did you want to see me?"

"You remeber you told me about that mirror? Did it somehow had some dragon carvings on it? And somehow a hole at the top?" she asked.

"Now that I think about it...yeah, it had some dragon carvings, but I never took them into consideration. I didn't even remeber of them until now" I said a little surprised.

"Oh my god! So it really is THAT mirror. I need to send a message to Princess Celestia. Until the reply comes, you can go. I am out of questions."

"If you don't mind, I have a couple of questions myself" I said, a little embarased of what I was going to ask.

"Sure. Ask away. The message can wait a little" she answered, turning her attention to me.

"Okay. Why are the ponies around here so accustomed to humans?" I asked, being bugged by this question for quite some time.

"Umm...they aren't" she answered with a smile.

"Wait...so then why don't they, you know, freak out?" I asked confused.

"Well...in Equestria friendship is the strongest link between ponies...so if you hurt no one...they will all feel friendly about you and become confortable over time. By now, they must be really confortable" she answered with a smile.

"Seems legit. Now, I want to ask you something personal. I don't want anyone, especially Rainbow Dash to know. I want to know, if there has ever been a... a... a relationship between a pony and a human" I asked almost whispering.

"I don't think so... why? You wanna date Dash?" she asked with a warm smile.

"That obvious huh? Well, yeah. Also any ideas how to aproach her?"

"Yeah. Just be yourself."

"But what if she doesn't want to?" I asked in a small voice.

"Dan, open your eyes. She put a rainbow on your T-shirt. Her cutie mark. Plus...ahhhhhh...she came here this morning...I really promised not to tell, but...you seem to need reassurance. She came here and asked kinda the same thing" Twilight said a little guilty. "But don't tell her I told you."

"Don't worry. This lips are sealed" I answered.

"A little idea you might like. She likes to look at the sky late in the night. Good luck. Now go, I need to send that message now" she said with a wink.

"Right. Thanks. Tell me when you get the reply" I said..

I left with only a thought in mind: that is why the sky is so clean. I started towards the house, with an idea forming in my mind. Some cakes from Pinkie, a blanket, some music from the phone I somehow still had, a stary night, a dance...yeah...that is it. A dance and then the question. But it will have to be a romantic one. I know just the one.

Without realising my steps guided me to Pinkie's place. I decided to go there to get the sweets first. I entered and went to the counter. Pinkie was there, with her back to the counter, taking some cupcakes out of the oven. I said:

"Hey there Pinkie."

She turned around and smiled, saying:

"Dan. How're you doing? What brings you here? Oh, I know...we must have a party for you coming over. I know the perfect decorations and..."

"Pinkie, please stop" I said laughing." I am here to ask a favor."

"So what do you need?" she asked jumping up and down.

"I need a couple of cupcakes. I'll pay them as soon as I finish my house and work for AJ" I said.

"Oh oh oh...I bet they are for Dash and you" she almost screamed.

"So obvious? Yeah, they are" I said.

"Okay then. No need to pay for them. They are on the house" she said with a smile.

"But Pinkie..."

"No buts. They are on the house...with one condition...a party for the new couple" she said.

"Pinkie I don't think that..."

"Here they are. Go now and build the house" she said. Then she went back to jumping around and being her usual self.

Am I missing something? Thay are all so sure of this...how is that even possible? Anyway, I shrugged it off and started with the cakes towards my house. I reached it in no-time. Dash wasn't there. I went inside and left the cupcakes on my bed and then went back outside. There I saw AJ, with another stalion and with Dash.

"Hi there sugarcube. Me and Bic Mac here are here to help ya with the hole in the roof. You and Dash can start painting and placing the bricks for the foundation of the rooms that need rebuilding. Let's do this Big Mac" said AJ.

"Right" the stalion said.

I grabed some bricks and started placing them with some cement for the kitchen. Dash quickly painted the roof from the air and then came to help me. While we were placing some bricks I said:

"So Dash...you wanna hang out tonight?"

"Hmm...meet me at 7 in the town plaza. I'll be there" she said with a grin.

We worked for quite some time. At about 5, the roof was repaired and AJ was about to leave, but turned to me and said:

"By the way sugarcube. No need to pay for that. Didn't realise the damage of this house. We'll help a friend in need. And...Good luck sugarcube" she added with a wink and then she left.

She must have seen the cakes. Oh well...still a couple of hours until the date. The kitchen is half done, so by tomorrow, it will be done...but where to get some furniture and a cooker? I asked myself. I decided to figure that out later. For now, I needed to make a backpack with the cakes and the blanket. And to find the song in the phone. Surprisingly, that took more than I expected. If my time measuring skills are right...it is almost seven, I told myself, taking the backpack and the phone and heading to the city plaza. In less then 2 minutes I was there. Dash wasn't there yet. But Rarity was coming towards me. She reached me and said:

"Dan. Such a pleasure to see you. Let me wish you luck."

Again? What the hell was going on?! I had to find out.

"Ooookay. What for?"

"Oh my. For the date of course!" she said.

"Might I ask why?"

"You don't know? Dash dated a lot of ponies...but all went home with the tails between their legs. Something about being too hardcore."

"Strange. I never thought she was hardcore. She seems quite normal" I said.

"There's the catch. You are the first she did this with. Behaving normal I mean. Like any other mare. Completely relaxed. Never seen her like that. She must like you a lot. You are such a fitting pair. Oh, here she comes. Good luck again" Rarity said and then quickly left.

Just then, Dash landed and came to me. She smiled and asked:

"So, where're we going?"

That was unexpected. I was so busy with the plan I never thought of the destination. Damn...I got it.

"What do you say about a race to the Everfree Forest?" I asked.

"You are so on!" she said with a grin. "At three. One. Two. Three!" And we both bolted to the forest. I remebered from the show, there was a beautiful clearing somewhere close to Ponyville, that was perfect for looking at the stars. And it took quite a while to find it. On the way, we played hide and seek, played with some bunnies, raced some more, jumped in a lake and so on. It was past 10, when we reached the clearing. I went in the middle and put the blanket down. The I looked at Dash and asked:

"You hungry? Come and have a cupcake."

"Sure thing" she said and sat down while she ate a cupcake with coconut and vanilla. When she finished, she asked:

"How did you know this are my favourites?"

"A bird told me" I answered smiling and thanking Pinkie Pie internally.

Then, we just stood looking at the sky together. We saw a shooting star. Dash said:

"Make a wish Dan"

I wished that she would accept to be my marefriend.

"What did you wish for, eh?" she asked.

"I won't tell you just yet" I said. I took my phone out, and started the song. Then I turned to Dash and asked:

"Wanna dance under the stary sky?"

"You bet" she answered. I took her left hoof in my right hand and put my left hand under her left wing. She put her right hoof on my left shoulder and we started dancing slowly. We moved in perfect sync, all while looking in each-others eyes. Her eyes seemed to glow under the light of the stars.

"You are so beautyful" I said, before my brain caught up with me.

She blushed a little and said:

"Thank you. You are a great dancer and prankster, you know that?" she said never moving her eyes.

"Heh heh. Thanks. But not as good as you" I added.

"We are at a tie here" she said. It was the most beautyful thing she could ever say. Being at a tie with Rainbow Dash and she admiting it is impossible. And yet she said it. That gave me the courage I needed. I took a deep breath and said:

"Dash...I...want to ask you something"

She continued smiling amd looking me in the eyes.

"Do...y...Do you want to be my marefriend?" I asked.

"Oh Dan. Of course I want to" she answered.

That is where I lost it, and without thinking, my lips connected with hers. At first she was surprised, but she then kissed back with such passion, I almost missed my step in our little dance. When we finally parted for air, she rested her head on my head, and I my head on her head. After a couple of seconds I said:

"It looks like in Equestria there is magic everywhere. You asked me what I wished for. I wished for you to say yes."

"Then, my sweet sweet Dan, that makes two of us. I wished for you to ask" she said, with the most lovely smile I had ever seen. In that moment, I did not care what people or ponies would say. I loved Dash and she loved me. No questiom about that. When the song ended, I lied on my back, and Dash lied beside me, with her head on my chest. I pulled the blanket around us, and together, we watched the sky. After a time, Dash said:

"We should go back, unless we want to get a cold. You could sleep at my place on the couch in my room. Plus, I think, by now all ponies in Ponyville know about us. I saw Pinkie leaving us about ten minutes ago."

Damn that Pinkie. I looked at Rainvow and nodded but added:

"You will have to fly me there."

"No problem. Just put your hand around my neck."

I put my hand around her neck, and she took off, me having the blanket in the other hand and the backpack on my back. We reached her home in no-time. We went in her room and I made myself confortable on the couch. I said one last thing before falling asleep:

"I love you Dash. Good night"

And I heard only one thing before falling asleep:

"I love you too, Daniel. Sweet dreams."

Then the wonderful world of the dreams engulfed me.

**Hope you enjoyed. The song on which this chapter is named and on which Daniel asked Dash is " I don't wanna miss a thing" by Aerosmith.**

**Quote of the day: "Dude, I wish I was russian and drive a tank in the middle of the freeway." Me to a friend of mine ( no offense to russians, I know a couple myself and they are very cool persons. I just think driving a tank is cool).**

**As usual, any errors of grammar or spelling , send them via PM. Don't forget to review.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Here it is. The newest chapter. I know it took a little more to write but it is a 3.5k long chapter. Anyway...enough of my rambling and excuses. Enjoy.**

Chapter 4 : In these hooves

"You shall fail. I will bring the new world order!" a man with red dragon wings spoke. And then it dived at me. All I saw next were flashes. A temple. The mirror. The horn. And some strange simbols.

And I woke up. I was drenched in cold sweat. It was early morning, and Dash was still asleep. I decided to go make the breakfast for both of us. I went outside the room, and searched for a couple of minutes until I found the kitchen. I started making pancakes, since that was all I could make with the ingredients there. But they were not with apple. I made them with cinnamon and sugar. And some oranges that were there, just for the flavour. I found also a good pan to make them in. I cooked for quite some time, until I made about 15 or so pancakes. As I was making the last one, I felt a pair of hooves on my shoulders. Without turning around, I said in a sweet voice:

" 'Morning Dashie. Slept well?"

I felt a head on my shoulder and heard a mumbling that sounded like a yes. I smiled and said:

"I made some pancakes. Hope you'll like them."

"We will see" she said, and I had a feelinf she was smiling. She then went to the table and tasted one. After she finished her bite and I turned around to put the last pancake on the tower of pancakes on the plate, she gave me a kiss on my forehead and then said:

"This is so sweet. How about you? Did you sleep well?"

"Me?" Should I tell her or not? I will uf the dream repeats itself. "Yeah. Very good" I lied.

"Are you sure? I mean, you were quite fighting the pillow there" she said with a smile, before realising what she said.

"Were you by any chance watching me sleep?" I asked with a grin on my face.

"I might have probably watched you for a couple of hours. You knew that you don't make any sound when you sleep? I could barely hear your breathing" she said with a sheepish smile.

That is impossible. Everyone tells me I snore like hell...maybe it is the athmonsphere here. Or could it be the dream? I'll have to ask Twilight. But I better tell Dash, I decided.

"Dash, I want to tell you something. I think last night I had some kind of weird dream. Because I usually snore a lot."

"Could have that dream lasted all night?" Dash asked with a smile.

"I don't th...wait a second. How would you know? Dash, how long have you been watching me?"

"About all night, until the sun began to rise. I usually stay up late. And I don't really sleep a lot" she added to try to change the subject.

"Dash...you watched me all night? That is so c..."

"Creepy? All of them say the same" Dash said with a frown then began eating her pancake.

"I was going to say cute. I wish I did that, but I was kind of sleepy from the work" I said with a smile.

-Dash POV-

Wait...What?He thought that was cute and not creepy? Amd he wished to have done that himself? Man, am I not a lucky mare. But this part is still not the best. The best part is I really love him. Twilight says not to jump to conclusion but that's it. He is mine and I am his.

-Dan POV-

Her ears suddenly went up like puppy ears. She smiled and jumped in my arms. She kissed my left cheek and said:

"Dan...we are so different, and yet we are so alike. Let's finish eating, and then we must talk to Twilight. She left a note on the door btw. And then see Pinkie about that party."

"Party? What party? And how does Twilight know I am here?" I asked confused.

"Pinkie usually gives a party to couples and I think she told Twilight last night" Dash said, getting down and eating her pancake.

We finished breakfast in no-time, and Dash carried me down to my house. Then we started together towards Twilight place, enjoying eachothers company.

When we arrived there, the door was open. I followed Dash inside to the same table where I met Twilight yesterday. There was only Spike there. Just when we were about to ask where Twilight was we heard a pony behind us:

"Hi there sugarcubes! How ya two doing today? I heard ya two lovebirds are now together" AJ said with a smile and a wink.

"We're very well AJ. And you heard well. Me and Dan are together now" Dash said proudly.

"So, it is not like with the others, right?" AJ asked.

Dash looked at me a little embarased and then said:

"No. He is not like the others. Besides...I love Dan" she said giving me a kiss on my cheek. " He cares for me and I care for him."

"Easy there sugarcube. I just wanted to congratulate ya. Now...did Twilight asked ya here?" AJ asked.

"Well...yeah. She asked you too?" I asked.

"In fact she did. And she asked Rarity, Pinkie and Fluttershy to come too...but I have no idea where she is!" Spike said, coming over to us, obviously overhearing our conversation. He was being followed by the three ponies in question.

"Dan, Rainbow Dash. Such a pleasure to see you two. I assume you two are together, as Pinkie told us?" Rarity said.

"Yes, we are" Dash said again, with a bright smile.

"Congratulations!" the three ponies said.

"We must have aaaaaaaaaa partyyyyy! Be at my place at 8" Pinkie said jumping around excited.

"I'm afraid that must wait a couple of minutes, Pinkie" said TWilight. entering the library.

"Twilight, what is going on?" I asked confused.

"It is about you and that mirror. By the way, congratulations to you two for getting together. Now, as I was saying, yesterday I sent a letter to Princes Celestia about that mirror. I found some information in a legend book about a mirror like the one you used to travel here" Twilight said.

"Just to be clear, I did not use it. It used itself" I said. "But I am not dissapointed it did" I added with a grin. Rainbow Dash gave me a friendly elbow in the stomach, saying:

"Just pretend you used it. It will be easier. Plus, who would I have dated in any other case?"

"Umm...sorry to interupt this, but it is an urgent matter" Twilight said.

"Right. We are listening" I said.

"I just received the response this morning. It seems that there is some kind of prophecy around that mirror and the user. The thing is, we must meet Celestia tomorrow in Canterlot. And she asked for us to bring the mirror" Twilight added.

"Umm...Twilight, I don't have the mirror. If you remember correctly, I was free-falling, and Dash caught me" I said.

"And now we are all on the same page. The thing is we must find the mirror" Twilight said.

"I think I can help with that." Dash said.

"How could ya possibly help us with that sugarcube? Unless ya have the mirror..." Aj started.

"How does the mirror look?" Dash interupted.

"Not too big, with some dragons and a hole at the top" I said.

"Okay. The good part is I have found in...the bad part is that it is brocken in half" Dash said.

"Wait...are you serious?" I asked.

"Yeah I am. It fell right after you. Since I caught you, it smashed to the ground, but broke only in half" Dash said.

"And you didn't say that before because...?" Rarity said.

"Because it did not seem important before and because none of you asked" Dash said with an inocent smile that transformed in a small evil grin.

"Okay. Dash, tomorrow morning bring the mirror and we will be leaving at 9 with the Express" Twilight said.

"Twilight, can I talk now?" Pinkie asked.

"Yes Pinkie, you can." Twilight said.

"YEEAY! So don't forget to be at my place at 8 for your party you two lovely love birds! We will have baloons, music and fun. Oh...and does any of you know how to play any instrument? Cuz we will have karaoke time and the pony with the instruments is busy and I can only play about 5 at a time" Pinkie said.

"I do" I said.

"Really? What do you play?" Dash asked looking at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Guitar. Rock guitar" I said.

"Hmmm...that might be quite interesting" Dash said.

"Oh, sweet Rainbow...you have no idea" I said, a plan forming in my mind. "If I can sing a song that you'll like, what would you do?" I asked.

"Hmm...we will see" she said with a wicked smile.

"So you know guitar? Yey. Now I only have to find a drummer" Pinkie said.

"So...when can I see the guitar?" I asked.

"You could come now! I have all instruments at my place...unless Twilight has anything else to say..." Pinkie said.

"No. I can't wait for the party though" Twilight said.

"Okay then. I'll come too. I want to see you play a couple of chords before the karaoke show" Dash said to me. I thought about it and it was a great idea of spending some more time together.

We told goodbye to everyone, and we started towards the Sugarcorner. On the way, me and Dash were quiet, and often caught eachother's eyes while we let Pinkie ramble her usual non-sense.

"And that is why I never bring a rubber duck to a tea party" Pinkie concluded as we reached her place. "You two can go and see the instruments while I bake some cupcakes" Pinkie said as we entered.

We went the the other end of the room, where some instruments were placed. I could see a drum set, a guitar, a bass-guitar and a couple of microphones. There was also an assamble of some sorts that had quite a few instruments, but we decided not to touch that. I grabed the guitar and started playing some chordes and tuning it for the song that night. Meanwhile, Dash just looked curious at the drums. I started a little solo and improvisation just to see if I remebered how to do it.

"That sounds quite good" Dash said. "BUt we might want to start working on that house of yours. Plus, if I remeber correctly, Pinkie likes to sing when she cooks and...well, let's just say that a rabid bear sings better. The curious thing is she sings like that only when she bakes. I wonder why."

I started laughing so hard that I almost fell on my back, before I heard THE SINGING. It felt like a swarm of bees were stabbing at my ears. I just grabed Dash's hoof and went to the kitchen. When we were there, I said:

"Pinkie. We gotta go. We will be here at 8. Super instruments. See you." And the we quickly dashed out of the house/bakery and raced to the hill. We arrived at the house, and on the door, there was a note:

"Dan. I talked with the princess, and she said that you must not work at this house any more, until we return from Canterlot. She also asks Rainbow Dash to allow you to sleep at her place until tomorrow. Twilight."

"Well, Dash, looks like you are going to look at me sleeping one more night" I said, giving her the note to read it.

"Looks like it" she said with a smile on her face, but then a frown appeared. "I wonder why we must not work on this house. Anywaaaaaay, since the work is out of question, what do you want to do?" she asked me.

"I was thinking about going to the clearing again and watching the clouds with you. If you want to, of course. And we could swim a little in that small pond at the end of the clearing, that is kinda hiddden" I suggested.

"That is the best idea today, with only one problem" she pointed out with a smile.

"And what that might be?" I asked a little confused.

"Well...we shoud race to the clearing...and to make this more fun...if you win, you will have a surprise waiting for you" she said with a big smile.

"Then, my Rainbow, the game is on. THREE, TWO, ONE! Go!"

And we bolted shoulder to shoulder, I somehow managed to keep up with her. I even managed to take the lead for a moment, right before we reached the clearing. It was enough to make me the winner.

"So...what did I win?" I asked a little out of breath.

"Where the hell did you learn to run like that? And can you teach me? Man, you are the first to keep up with me" she said smiling."As for the prize, you will have to wait until tonight, after the party" she added with a smile.

"Oh man! Okay then. So, what do you say about a little swimming?" I said catching my breath.

"I think that the last one in the pond is a rotten dragon egg" Dash said, and ran to the pond. I ran after her and we jumped in the water. We swam, we splashed, we dived, and we swam again. When my arms began to feel stiff, I said:

"Let's get out there. I need to get these clothes dry. I don't want to get a cold."

"Don't worry" Dash said as I climbed on the bank. "Now don't move. I call this Rainbow tornado drier" she said with pride. Then she flew in circles around me, with increasing speed. THe speed seemed to stop when the colors of the rainbow began forming. It only lasted a couple of seconds and then I was dry.

"Thanks Dash" I said.

"Nice hair" Dash said. I looked at my reflection on water and saw My hair was kind of spiked. I liked it.

"You know, you are not a bad hairdresser( no idea if that is the word...please correct me if I am wrong)" I said not taking my eyes from the water.

She smiled and together we went back in the clearing. We sat in the center on our backs, and looked at the clouds changing shapes. She scooted closer to me, until she put her head on my chest, embracing me with a hoof. I put my hand around her, and brought her closer, and gave her a kiss on her forehead. She smiled at me and then moved her eyes to the clouds. She then asked something that surprised me:

"Dan, how was your life before coming here?"

"Very boring. I would wake up, meet some people I used to call friends, go to school, come home, do some homeworks, play guitar a little and go to sleep. I really enjoy the life here. Nothing to worry about, reliable friends and, most important, a loving marefriend..." I said smiling.

"And have you ever had another ummm...relation?" she asked.

"Well, yeah I did. But she left me. Why do you ask?" I answered.

"Well, you care so much, you know how to have fun, you can play guitar and dance... I wondered just what was your life before because, when you arrived here, you kind of never smiled...and in 3 days you are only a smile" Dash said, looking at me. I was chickling. "What is so funny?" she asked.

"The truth is I rarely smiled before coming here, and that only when laughing at a good joke or when I was tipsy...BUt the point is...here I feel different. I feel needed. I feel loved" I said.

"I love you Dan" Dash said.

"And I you. And I think I know what is going on inside your head" I said. "You are worried about the trip to Canterlot...am I right?"

"Noooo...well, yeah. Usually it is a bad thing when someone is called by Celestia to the castle" Dash said, her face a little worried.

"Worry not. All will be okay. I think Celestia just wants to meet me in person...and I promise that nothing she says or does will change me" I said to reassure her.

She said nothing, but instead our lips connected. We stood there in silence for quite some time, when we saw some lights coming from Ponyville. The Party. We forgot about our party.

"Should we go?" I asked.

"Pinkie will be so mad if we don't" Dash said and we started towards the party.

We arrived there in no-time at all. I was thinking that 2 parties in 3 days is quite a lot...and a expected another party at Canterlot...that if everything went well. But a certain feeling in my stomach told me that something unexpected was going to happen. I think Dash felt it too...and that is why she asked me those things.

As we joined the party, everyone looked at us and clapped their hooves on the ground. Either they remebered our dance...or they knew we were together. Or both.  
>"Hey Dash...why does everyone congratulate me for being with you? What did the other ones went through?" I asked.<p>

"Nothing to much. Just the first morning, when they left because they considered me too free-spirited, they got humiliated in public" she said but then added " But they were not caring, they didn't like pranks and they had no idea how to dance".

I smiled and we went to the bar. Just before I managed to get a drink for me and Dash, Pinkie came to me and said:

"The karaoke starts. Come and plat us a song."

I got up and walked to the instruments. I took the guitar and thought that a drummer would have been a welcomed addition...but Pinkie introduced me, and then gave me the microphone. I placed it in his stand before saying:

"I want to play this song for my marefriend, Rainbow Dash. I would have liked to have a drumme but it is okay this way too. The song is called "In These Arms" by Bon Jovi."

I played the first couple of chords, looking for Dash, before the drums started. I turned around to see who was drumming. There I saw none other that Rainbow Dash. I gave her quizical look and she just smiled. I smiled too and continued the song. When we reached the chorus, all the ponies started dancing or clapping their hooves. I looked at Dash again. She was in perfect sync with my guitar and with the drums. I just wondered where she learned to play drums. Then I remembered her looking at the drums when we came earlier. We finished the song, and after everyone gave us an ovation, we went back to the bar. When we reached it, I asked:

"So Dash...since when you know to play drums?"

"Since today" she said with a smile. "It is just like flying. And that song was beautyful. Thanks" she added and kissed me on the cheek.

"Well, you should play more often. Maybe we can start a band" I said.

"Maybe. Let's have a drink. I'm so thirsty."

We drunk some apple juice, before the others came and said all at the same time:

" That was awesome!"

"Thanks. But we gotta go now. If we want to be there for the train tomorrow morning, that is" Dash said.

"Yeah. A really goos party Pinkie" I said and Pinkie smiled.

Me and Dash then went to a microphone to thank everyone for coming amd after saying goodbye to our friends, we went outside.

"So...where are we going?" I asked Dash.

"For you surprise of course. In the clearing" Dash said and we slowly walked there.

We arrived, and I could see only one thing there. A sleeping bag. And a big one.

"Surprise! I thought a night together with you under the stary sky would be awesome" Dash said.

"Yeah, it would, but why is there only one sleeping bag?" I asked.

And then it hit me right in the head. I looked at Dash and said only one thing:

"You want to sleep together?"

"Yeah. But only sleep this time..." she mumbled something and grew bright red. I looked at her and smiled. Then I said:

"Sleeping is awesome. Plus...I want it to be awesome and not before an official meeting."

She looked at me and a wide smiled grew on her face. I took her hoof and we got together in the sleeping bag, she with her head on my chest, at the shadow of a tree. We looked at the moon. It was a full big moon that night.  
>We just stood there, waiting for sleep to come and changing sweet replies. When I talked next, I got no answer. I looked at Dash and she was asleep and had a wide smile. I moved my hand through her mane and stroked her hair. Her smile grew bigger. Then I put my mouth to her ear and said in a whisper:<p>

" I love you, Dash, and I always will"

I heard a faint " I love you too" before I let myself be engulfed once again by the peaceful dream world, feeling myself in Dash's hooves and Dash in my arms.

**Hope you liked this. In case you missed it, the song is called " In these arms" by Jon Bon Jovi. As usual, if I made any mistakes, please tell me and I'll fix them.**

**Quote of the day: " It's time you shut the fuck up and let me win this" (my answer for my friend that asked what time it was during a match of League of Legends)**.

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay...Hi there everyone. I am sorry this took so long, but I had a problem with my computer and had to re-write this chapter a couple of times. But worry not, this chapter is 4,8k long as a bonus to you guys/girls for being so patient with me. Also, from this chapter I will introduce a new thing**

**'Write message here' - this will be a thing a character says with his mind to another charachter(spoiler...sorry, but I had to explain it so that you are not confused). Enjoy!**

Chapter 5 : Spread your wings

"You have nowhere to run, Dan. I will catch you and that will be the end. HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA" the human with red dragon wings said.

I opened my eyes in a split second, the echoes of his laugh still clear in my mind. Dash was still sleeping in my arms. I looked at the sky. It had a beautyful cyan color, just like Dash. And it was cloudless this morning. The sun was bright and warm. And it was almost 9 in the morning. THE TRAIN! I forgot about the train. God damn it, I told myself. I looked at Dash and whispered in her ear:

"Rise and shine, or we will miss the train."

When she heard the word 'train', her head bolted upwards, missing mine just barely. She looked at me and said:

"Holy mothe of hay. I'll go and get the mirror. You go to the train station". Then she got up and was about to fly, when she stopped in her tracks and came back to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek:

"Good morning, by the way." She smiled and then flew.

I stood there for a couple of seconds, and then I started sprinting towards the train station in Ponyville. My feet carried me towards Twilight's house, because I had no idea where the train station was. But on the door was a note that said the library will be closed for a couple of days. Which only meant Twilight and Spike were both at the train station.

"Oy, Dan! Come on, sugarcube, we should be at the train" I heard AJ behind me. I turned around and said:

"'Morning to you too."

"Yeah yeah...we are kinda late so let's get moving" AJ said, already running towards the train station. I quickly sprinted to catch her and then ran right behind her. While we were running, she said:

"I see you can run quite well...I heard a rumor that said you managed to beat Dash in a race. If so, how did you do it?"

"Umm...it was a good race...and I managed to keep up with her...but I have no idea how" I answered.

We reached the train station at the same time with Dash, and just when the others were getting in. We got in right behind them. Dash gave the mirror to Twilight. Meanwhile, I sat on a place right beside the window, and Dash sat beside me. On the other side of me was Twilight. I asked her:

"Twilight, how long is this trip to Canterlot?"

"Just about 4 hours" she said.

"Damn...that is quite some distance. So...what did Celestia found about the mirror?" I asked, trying to start a conversation.

"I really have no idea. She told me it was too big of a thing to write in a letter" she said. "But, the good part is that she does not consider you a problem for Equestria" she added.

"That is quite a good thing" Dash said. This thing must have improved her mood a litttle from the one she had yesterday, I thought.

"So, how long will we be staying there?" I asked.

"A couple of days. I think the princess has something planned for you. And for Dash too" Twilight said.

"Why me?" asked Dash a little surprised.

"I might have probably told the princess in a letter that you and Dan are...together" Twilight said, a little embarased.

"Oh. Not that much a big deal about telling her. I would have told her anyway" Dash said.

"Why would you do that?" I asked.

"So that the news reaches the Wonderbolts and that they see that there are ponies or humans better than them" Dash said.

I was confused a little...then I remembered what Rarity told me...Dash must have dumped somepony from the Wonderbolts. I thought about it for a second, but shrugged it of, as Dash put her head on my chest.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to take a nap" Dash said and almost instantly fell asleep.

Twilight and the others chuckled a little and Spike said:

"I swear that if she isn't flyin, all she does is napping."

I laughed too and we spent the rest of the time until Camterlot talking about the party last night and the song I played.

When we were just 5 minutes away from Canterlot, I woke up Dash, and Twilight told me:

"Okay...Dan, we will be sorounded by royal guards the entire trip from the train to the throne room. I told you just so you not panick when there will be about 12 armored ponies around us. Any questions?"

"Umm...yeah. Is it necessary?" I asked, feeling a little dumb.

"Well...not really. But since Shining Armor is the Captain of the royal guards and knowing him to be over-protective with his little sister, Twilight...it kinda is" Dash said.

"Right. Everypony ready? Here we go!" Twilight said looking at us all, as the doors of the train opened. But Twilight was mistaken. There weren't 12 guards. Not by a long shot. There were actually 24 guards plus the Captain.

"Twilight. Such a pleasure to see you again" Shining Armor said with a smile.

"Hello brother. I want you to meet Dan. He is a friend of mine" Twilight said.

"A pleasure sir" I said.

"Ohh...no need to call me sir...I am Shining Armor. A pleasure to meet you." Shining Armor said with a chuckle.

Just then, Dash grabbed my hand and whispered in my ear: "Play along". Then she said:

"Hi there Shiny. How is stuff going around the castle?"

"Hey, Dash. All is good. How are you dealing with the stalions? How many you dumped this month?" Shining Armor replied.

"None" she said simply.

"WHAT?! You stopped dating?!" Shining Armor expressed very confused and amused.

"Now you are ridiculous. Of course not. I just found one that cares and I really love him" she added smiling.

"And who might that be?" Shining Armor asked getting serious.

"It is me" I said, understanding where Dash was going.

"What?! You are dating a human?! No ofense Dan. And how long is this happening?" he asked again.

"About 3 days" AJ said.

"That is the longest relation yet" he complimented. "Well, I wish you two luck."

I thanked him, and then whispered towards Dash: "He is your way of getting the info to the Wonderbolts?"

"Yep" she said, and we all followed Twilight and Shining Armor, together with the 24 guards towards the castle.

The city we passed through was wonderful. The houses, the shops and even the people looked kind of royal. All had exquisite styles. Rarity's eyes were moving from left to right without stopping. She kept muttering things like : So beautyful. or I need to do that one when I get back.

The walk was quite short. When we reached the gates, the gurds saluted and let us go through. We walked the hallways of the castle in a slow pace. At every intersection, 2 guards would leave us, thus, when we reached what it looked like the throne room, only 2 guards and Shining Armor were with us. The last two guards took their places near the doors of the room, and opened them. Our not so small party enetered the room, with Shining Armor guiding us. We walked towards the throne, where Celestia was. When we where ten feets from the throne, everyone stopped and we bowed in respect.

"Rise, my friends and be welcomed in Canterlot" Celestia said with a weak smile.

"Pricess, I brought them as you asked" Shining Armor said.

"Thank you, Captain. You can return to your duty" Celestia said.

"Yes, your majesty" he said. Then he bowed and left the room.

"Twilight, my dear, how are you?" Celestia asked looking at us.

"I am well...but if I may...I want to ask you why are we here?" Twilight asked.

"As usual, straight to the point. Very well then, you eight are here because of the mirror" Celestia said getting a little serious. Then she looked at me and said:

" You must be Daniel, the new...umm...boyfriend of Rainbow Dash and the human that traveled to our world by the said mirror" Celestia said with a smile.

"Yes, your majesty. My name is Daniel Zerk. A pleasure to meet you, your majesty" I said.

"Indeed. Now you all follow me...there is somewhere we must go before we can find out about the mirror. I will require to see the mirror first" Celestia said.

Twilight gave Celestia the mirror, and after looking at the two pieces for a couple of seconds, she said:

"Indeed, there can be no doubt about this mirror. It really is The Mirror of Truth. Follow me" Celestia said, walking us through some dark hallways in the brightly lit castle. The Mirror of Truth? What is that supposed to mean? I asked myself. I looked at the ponies around me, and all of them were quite confused about the mirror. Celestia guided us through some stairs, until we were deep under earth. We walked to a wall of blood-red stone and we stopped. Celestia moved her horn in some complicated patterns with amazing speed, before the wall literally melted right under our eyes.

"This is the room of the Knights of Light" Celestia said.

We looked around us and we saw a round table in a corner with 13 chairs of stone. 12 of them had in front of then a horn that looked exactly like the horn on the chimney. The only one that had not such a horn, was the biggest of the chairs.

"There is a prophecy about this mirror. It is said that this mirror traveled the worl both of humans and ponies, and brought forth from each world a warrior capable to destroy what we commonly know as Evil. There have been 12 Knights of the Light from the beginning of time. Until now. Daniel, this mirror chose you as the new Knight" Celestia said in a solemn voice.

Just then, the wall appeared back and sealed us in. Then, in front of us, at the table sat 12 spirits: 6 humans and 6 ponies.

"Welcome, young Knight" one of the humans that looked like the oldest said. "We are the Defenders of Truth. My name is Gladir".

"Hello...Gladir. My name is Daniel. Daniel Zerk. Now, I know nothing of why I am here, besides the fact that I am supposed to be a Knight" I said a little confused.

"Oh, finally a brave one that knows how to ask the right questions" one of the ponies said.

"Quite right. Now, you are here indeed to become the new Knight. But...your mission is to defeat the one we failed to. But it won't be an easy task. Do you think you are up to it?" Gladir said.

"Well, do I have a choice?" I asked.

"No...not really" Gladir said.

"Well then, I am up to it" I said.

"Good. We will start training in a week" Galdir said.

"Wait...training? What kind of training? And where?" I asked.

"Yes, training. You will train with me. We will be using the horns you see here. You should have one at your home...and the home of all the other Knights before you. To contact us, you just have to touch the horn and concentrate. Now, the training will start in a week. Until then, you must learn how to fly...so here you go. And don't forget. They respond to your thoughts. If you want them to dissapear that think about it and it will happen" Gladir said.

A bright light erupted from the 12 horns on the table and hit my back. I felt a little pain in my back and then, I heard Dash say:

"Whoah! That are some nice dragon wings, Dan."

I looked at my back as best as I could, and I saw some dark blue dragon wings.

"This is so cool!" I said excited. "But...how am I supposed to fly?" I asked.

"I'll teach you, no problem" Dash said.

"And what are the rest of us supposed to do?" Twilight asked.

"The rest of you will have important roles, but you will learn about them later. Dan will tell all of you what you must do. Celestia, I know you are against fighting, but this time, I think it is going to happen. You do know the end of the proohecy, right?"Galdir asked.

"I do. I will do as you say" Celestia said.

"Good. Keep in touch with Daniel and he will tell you what you must do. I sense great trouble ahead for all of us. Be ready for anything." Gladir said. Then all the ghosts vanished and the well that sealed us in was gone once again. We walked back to the throne room, where Celestia said:

"Daniel, take this necklace. It will create a magic link so that if you want me to know something, just imagine you are writting me a note. In this way, we can always talk if something unexpected comes up. Also, Shining Armor has one, and so will Rainbow Dash". Her horn glew for a second and two neclaces appeared: one on my neck and one on Dash's neck. They were made from a shiny kind of metal, and had the shape of a feather. Then Celestia said:

"Now, since we are all done with the problems of Equestria until further notice by either Gladir or Daniel, I invite you to the Ball I had the pleasure to prepare for you all. And, since I heard that Daniel here is a good guitar player..."

"Good?! I never saw anyone play guitar better. Not even the pony that usually plays guitar at Pinkie's partyes!" Dash said excited.

"Dash please calm down. You are becoming Pinkie number two" I said laughing a lttle.

Dash stoppee and put on a serious face and remained quiet, before grining and looking at me.

"As I was saying, since Daniel here is such a good guitar player, he could play something for us at the party. I would like to hear what kind of music do humans listen" Celestia said with a smile.

"And you will, Princess" I said.

"Now, since the Ball starts at roughly 9 in the evening, you all can go to the rooms I had had prepared for you. There are two rooms that have two beds: one is Daniel's and Dash's and the other one is Twilight's and Spike's. The rest of you have separate rooms. Please enjoy your staying in the proud city of Canterlot" Celestia said, before calling Shining Armor to show us to our rooms.

Mine and Dash's room was more like a house. In fact, I think it was bigger then the house I lived in when I was back in the human world. And that house had two floors and an attic! The beds were also the biggest ones I had ever seen. The window was big and overlooked a beautyful garden. The wall in front of one of the beds had a big tapestry of a proud alicorn with blue mane. There were a couple of wardrobes in the room and a small library and even three or four tables with flower on them.

"Man, this room is super!" I said.

"You can say that again!" Dash said as she flew around the room that was over 10 meters tall. When she reached the window, she looked at the garden and said:

"So Dan...what do you say if I fly you down there and I teach you how to fly today, so that we will have the next week to ouselves?"

"That is a very good idea. Let's just do it" I said.

Dash picked me up and flew me down in the garden. There, I looked at the flowers for a couple of minutes, taking in all their beauty, before Dashed pulled me back to reality by whispering in my ear: "Ponyville to Dan. Come in Dan. Time to learn how to fly".

I looked at her with a smile and said:

"Riiiiight...I got distracted by the scenery." I made my wings appear and Dash said:

"Listen very carefully. It is not difficult. All you have to do is flap your wings up and down, with enough force to lift you up. And in the same time, try to keep your balance. When you are up, just flap slowly, so that you won't get tired, and just enough to keep you up. Any questions?"

"Not really...it sounds fairly simple. I'll give it a try" I said, starting to flap my wings. To my surprise, it only took me a couple of flaps to lift me off the ground, adn after strugling for a minute with the balance, I managed to keep myself in air, with a casual flap once a couple of seconds. Dash flew up right beside me and said:

"You learn fast. That is good, because now you must learn how to move forward, backward and to the sides. First, for forward movement, just slightly turn your wings with the tip to the ground. Not too much though, because else you will dive and that is not really the safest thing to do. While you do that, try to keep your legs in the shape of a tail, like you would keep them when you swim, for example."

"How the hell do you know how a human swims?" I asked laughing.

"I swam with you, remember? Now do as I say" Dash said laughing at my memory.

I managed to slightly move forward, and gaining confidence I managed to flew forward in a constant way. Then I managed to learn banking and turning and break and reverse all by myself. Dash caught up with me and said:

"Okay...you managed to do all the basic stuff...somehow...How did you do it?" she asked.

"Let's say I had a good teacher that I watched flying for the last days...plus I saw a bird do it and I just tryed to copy it."

"Thanks. Now I think you can fly by yourself...the rest of the mobility and aerobatics** ( yeah...aerial acrobatics...that is a word right now :)) ) **come with time. But one important thing about flying is speed. Speed is like the best thing ever. Let's try a race" Dash said.

We raced around the garden and we flew back through the window in our room. I somehow managed to land and made my wings vanish. I looked at the clock and said:

"We better get ready...the party starts in a half an hour". Yeah...we had been flying for about 5 and a half hours. Damn...and the evening is only starting.

We decided to take a shower because fo the trip we had and the night we spent in the forest. Fortunately, the room had two bathrooms, so that we could both take the shower at the same time and still have time to chose something to wear. I forgot to say that the wardrobes were full with clothes...even human ones, and the princess was so kind to allow me to take any clothes I liked.

I got into my shower and Dash went into hers. The bathroom was gigantic...it had a big sink, a dark blue bathtub, cyan marble floor, and a wall was only mirrors. The shower was shiny and the water was just right. After showering, I felt refreshed. I took one of the 10 towels and went to chose my clothes from the wardrobes. Dash decided she will only wear the necklace that the Princess gave her. I, on the other hand, chose a pair of blue jeans that looked very confortable, a T-shirt with a dragon wing on the chest, and a pair of comfortable baskets that I liked instantly.

"Are we ready?" I asked.

"Yep. Let's get going. I haven't been to a royal party for quite some time" Dash said.

We got outside of our room, and a guard that was waiting outside, guided us to the ball room. The guard was there because Celestia asked him to bring me behind the stage where the music will be played, so that I can see the instruments and play the first song. After that, I could just enjoy the party.

Me and Dash entered the ball room. There were at least two to three hundreds ponies inside. Dash said:

"Go and get ready for your part. And..." showing to the necklace " we will keep in touch."

I smiled and I let the guard guide me behind the stage. There were three ponies that were playing the instruments. When they saw me, they said:

"You must be Daniel. The Princess told us about you. She said you are quite a guitar player."

"Yeah, I am. But I only play in the free time so I don't think I am as good as you guys" I said.

"Well then, why don't you show us what can you do?" one with a guitar cutie mark said. I took one of the electric guitars and looked at them. I then played the two solo from "Fear of the dark" by Iron Maiden. When I was done, all of them looked at me with huge eyes and the same one with the guitar said:

"You say you're not good? Dude, that was like the best guitar solo I have ever heard. My name is Chordan. I usually play electric guitar, but tonight, for the first song that you play, I'll be the bass guitar. We usually play without one. The one over there, with the drum cutie mark is Bumper. He'll be your drummer. Just show him the rithm on the guitar and he'll play it. The one with the piano cutie mark is Joshua. He will be the secind voice, if you need it and will support the main guitar. And if you want anytime to call as to play at a party of sorts, We'll do it just for the songs. Judging by that solo you did there, you know your stuff. If you ever consider joining a band, don't hesitate to give us a call. By the way, we are The Jammers" Chordan said.

"Right. Well, let's give this song a try before we go on the stage. This is what I think we should play..." I said.

-10 minutes later-

"Okay. This is very good. We will go there on the stage in about a couple of minutes, so let's do it. Who's with me?" I asked.

"We are!" The Jammers said.

'Dash, I think you will like the song very much' I said through our mental link.

'I can't wait to hear it" she answered.

"And now, let's give a round of applause to The Jammers and their guest, Daniel Zerk, who will sing us a song" the announcer could be heard. We took out instruments and walked on the stage. I went to the michrophone and said:

"HEEELLLLOOOO, CANTERLOT! My name is Daniel Zerk and I am here to sing you this song...which, I also want to say, is for my new marefriend, Rainbow Dash!"

'What in the name of hay do you think you are doing?' Dash asked in a comic way.

'Well...you are the one who wanted all of Equestria to know that you have a boyfriend' I answered smiling at her, seeing her in the audience.

"The song is called "Spread your wings" and is played by one of my favourite bands, Blind Guardian." I said.

We played the song without even the slightest mistake, like we were playing together from the childhood. When we ended the song, Celestia's voice said in my head:

'You know Daniel, Dash was right. You really are a good guitarist. Nice song.'

'Thank you, your majesty' I answered. I saw Celestia at one of the platforms way near the windows. She simled. Meanwhile, the ponies from the dance floor started to cheer and to clap their hooves. They wanted more. I said:

"Okay, fellow ponies. That is all I can play tonight. I will leave you with the capable tunes of The Jammers. Thank you"

They clapped their hooves again and then The Jammers started playing something different.

I walked down from the stage and went where Dash was. All my friends were there and complimented me on the way I performed. Then I asked Dash:

"What do you think about a dance to teach those high-class ponies how it is done?"

"Sweetie, you just read my mind" she said as she grabbed my hand and together we walked on the dance floor.  
>We started dancing slowly.<p>

"Thank you" Dash said.

"For what?" I asked with a smile.

"For what you said on the stage. You know, you are the first person that put me over himself. I mean, none of the other ponies I dated would have ever sang a song for me with an audience of three hundred high-class ponies that will send this news all over Equestria" she said as she brought her lips forward and made contact with mine.

"I love you so much" I said after we parted.

"I love you too" Dash said.

We danced for quite a while, until the Princess spoke:

"My dear ponies, I now declare this ball as a success. However, as all things must come to an end, so must this ball. I wish everyone a very good night."

I grabed Dash hoof, and looking at a clock that was over the bar, I realised it was 3 in the morning.

'Dash...what do you say about a good half-night sleep?' I asked.

'Sound amazing' she said.

'Something tells me we will only use one bed' I said.

'Are you out of your mind? Do you think I will sleep without my favourite pillow? Plus, have you seen the size of those beds? AJ entire family can sleep in one and there is still room' she said.

I started laughing amd took Dash to our room. We entered, and without even undressing, we got into bed. Dash put her head on my chest, and said:

"Sweet dreams"

"You too" I said as I brought her a little closer and we traveled together with the train of dreams to whatever destination our minds would carry us.

**Hope you liked and enjoyed this chapter. If you did, a review will be highly apreaciated. And don't forget to tell me of any mistakes I made. Also, last time, an anonymous reviewer asked me to play League of Legends with him. Dude, if you play LoL on EUW or EUNE, I can play with you, but you might wanna be from Europe...because of the time barrier. If you know you can play with me, even with this conditions, create an account on this site and I will give you my nick to add me to friends. Just PM me after creating the account and I will give you the name you add :D**

**The song of this chapter is "Spread Your Wings" by Blind Guardian.**

**Quote of the day:"Dude, how the fucking hell did you manage to throw your fucking phone in the fucking toilet?" a friend of mine to me the other day, after I told him what I did over the weekend ( Yes, the phone still works, thanks to the magic of rice. Remember, if you ever do what I did...NEVER start your phone...disasemble it and put him in a bag of rice for 36 hours. It works.)**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay...here is the newest chapter. I had some author's block and then a very long period of no internet connection...so that is why it took so long. But nvm that...enjoy.**

Chapter 6 : Nothing else matters

The morning came sooner than I expected. I had no weirds dreams that night. I opened my eyes to see Dash still sleeping. I decided to give her 10 more minutes before waking her up. I just stood there and looked at her beautyful mane, her perfect face and I began day-dreaming. Only when I felt a kiss on my cheek did I realize Dash was awake and had a big smile on her face. She said:

"So that is what it takes to take you out from your dreaming. I tried ticklying you but it didn't work."

"Good morning to you too" I said, returning the kiss on her left cheek. "You did tickle me? How long have you been up?"

"Well, about a couple of minutes. What do you say if we go have something to eat? I am starving" Dash said, keeping her smile on her face.

"Yeah...let's do that. But what about the others?" I asked.

"Don't worry about them. They are probably there already. After all is half past 9, and if I know AJ and Twilight well enough, they are eating right now" Dash said.

We got up, I changed my clothes to the T-shirt on which Dash added the rainbow, which had been cleaned, and a pair of relaxing trousers, along with a good pair of trainers. We opened the door, and there was a guard there. When he saw us, he said:

"The Princess requested your presence in the throne room. Follow me!"

'What about breakfast?' Dash complained mentally.

'Ohh, come on Dash. It can wait a couple of minutes. Plus the Princess requested our presence, not the other ones. Must be really importnant' I said.

We both followed the guard to the throne room. We entered, aproached the throne, bowed and said:

"Good morning, your majesty."

"Good morning Daniel, Rainbow Dash. I hope you had a fun evening yesterday. Very interesting and enjoyable song, Daniel" Celestia said.

"Thank you, your majesty, and yes, we had a very enjoyable evening as well" I answered.

"I am happy to hear it, because it won't last long. I just got information from the other end of Equestria that a massive army is aproaching. The pegasi that live there said that the army would reach the closest inhabited village in about a month" Celestia said.

"Umm...I am sorry to say this, but how far from the village did the pegasi flew that it took them so little time to relay the news to you? And how do they know the army will be there in a month?" I asked.

"Two very good questions. The pegasi I am talking about are some imperial guards I sent to the outskirts of the kingdom of Equestria. Shining Armor teleported them there along with a baby dragon that can send messages to me. The message I received last night. That is why I had to shut the party down so quickly. I sent Shining Armor to them imediatelly and he said that the army was one month away from the borders of the kingdom and that it appeared to have no leader. However, he could not identify the creatures" Celestia explained.

"That is very interesting" I said. "So, I need to start my training early. That means no free week."

"I am afraid so" Celestia said. "Also, you will not do this training alone. Rainobw Dash will become a Scout while you become a Knight."

"How come I'll get this kind of training?" Dash asked a little suspicious.

"Gladir suggested this, but only he knows what he is doing" Celestia said.

"That is so cool...but won't Dash need a horn like the one Gladir was talking about yesterday?" I said.

"You can both use the same horn so that you can learn at the same time. Gladir will explain better. But enough of this now. Go to breakfast and then I'll come to talk to the rest of you about this. And don't tell them anything about the training you do...You two are the only one who must know about the training you are doing" Celestia said.

We bowed again and left the room. We walked our way to the kitchen that was on the other side of the castle. We arrived there quick enough and found AJ, Twilight, Fluttershy and Spike at the table. But there was not trace of Rarity and Pinkie Pie.

"Good Morning everyone. What's for breakfast?" I asked.

"Hayburgers and some pancakes" Twilight said.

"Where are Pinkie and Rarity?" I asked as I tasted the hayburger. It tasted like a vegeteal burger. Quite good for something made out of hay.

"In town. Rarity wanted to look at some cloth designs she saw yesterday. They should return soon" Spike said.

Me and Dash ate quickly and just as I finished my last bite, Pinkie and Rarity returned. Just as the ywo ponies sat down with us all, Princess Celestia came in and said:

"Good morning everypony. Hope you all enjoyed the ball last night."

"Of course Princess, it was a very enjoyable party" Twilight said.

"Good. Because I am afraid it was the last for a period of time. I just received report this morning that the Evil is on his way to Equestria. Shining Armor said it is a month away at most" the Princess said.

"OH MA GASH! That is so little time. What are we gonna do, Princess?" AJ asked.

"Don't worry. I and Shining Armor, along with Gladir discussed a strategy to be ready for the Evil. It is as follows: Shining Armor will start a campaign to recruit every able pony that can fight and will train them. While he does that, I, with the help of Gladir will train all 6 of you: Pinkie Pie, Twilight, Spike, Applejack, Rarity and Fluttershy to become two special commando teams under the command of Rainbow Dash and Daniel. As for Daniel and Rainbow Dash, they will return to Ponyville to train with Gladir. But the other 6 of you, I am afraid, must remain here in Canterlot for your training. Rainbow Dash and Daniel...as soon as you contact Gladir, he will explain you the strategy we have decided on. Any questions?" Celestia said.

"I do have a question...will we see Rainbow Dash and Daniel at all during this month?" Twilight said.

"Yes...they will come once a week to talk abput strategies. Any more questions?" Celestia said. No one said a thing. "Okay. You have 10 minutes before Shining Armor will teleport Rainbow Dash and Daniel back to Ponyville. Daniel, I suggest you to contact Gladir tomorrow morning so that both you and Rainbow Dash recover after the ball and a half-night sleep. Until then, I suggest that Rainbow Dash teaches you aerial acrobatics and advanced flying techniques. They might come in handy. And now, I wish everyone here a very best day, until the training begins. You are free to do as you want today. Have fun" Celestia said with a smile. We all bowed and she left.

Everyone looked at me and Dash and Twilight said:

"Until next week, we are going to miss you two. I wish you two good luck in your training. I do hope we are done with this fast so that we can return to our normal lives."

"Yeah. I want ya two to give yar best im the training and I'll see ya two sugarcubes soon" Applejack added with a smile.

"All the best of luck to you all too amd we will see you all really soon" I said as Shining Armor entered the room.

"Oh...for hay's sake. They aren't going on the battlefield yet. It is only a training" he said almost starting laughing.

"Yeah...a battle we must win or we are doomed. And I bet you won't say the same things to your recruits when you will prepare them" I said with a big smile.

"Hmmm...good point, I give you that. Very well, good luck with the training you two...and don't overdo it" he said shaking hoof with hand. " Now...are we ready?" he asked.

"I think so. Let us be of then. The sooner we leave, the sooner we return" I said.

"Okay...here we go. Just don't move" Shining Armor said. His horn flashed white for a second and the light engulfed me and Dash. Then, when we oppened our eyes, we were with Shining Armor in Ponyville.

"Come with me. I have to show you something" Shining Armor said walking towards the hill where my house was. Me and Dash walked right behind him. It didn't take us long to get there. What I saw really blew my head off. The house we tried to repair was fully done, and so beautyful, like it was new.

"This is a present from the Princess. Please do accept it" Shining Armor said.

"Are you out of your stalion mind? Of course Daniel will accept it. Right Dany boy?" Dash asked sheepishly.

"Yes. Thank the Princess for me, will you?" I said.

"Of course. I'll keep you two informed about what is happening. Good luck with training. And a last piece of advice: try to finish the training faster than the end of the month. The Evil is unpredictable. We have to be ready" Shining Armor said. Then, the white light engulfed him and he went back to Canterlot. Since we were alone on a such beautyful day, and since training was supposed to start tomorrow, I said:

"So...what do you say about a nice eveninh flight? Maybe you can teach me a couple of aerobatics."

"I thought you weren't going to ask" Dash said as she was about to take off. I summoned my wings and we took off at the same time. With my limitations to what I was doing, I was kind of bad, but I quickly managed to keep up with Dash. I even learned some of the aerobatics she did like barrel-rols, triple loopings and so on. We stopped on a cloud to take a small break, and Dash said:

"Now that we got you up and running...or rather flying, what do you say of a little race?"

"You are soooooo on, Dashie!" I said with a smile. We took off at the same time and flew straight up for a couple of hundreds of feet, and then we flew across the sky at stunning speed. I managed to keep up with Dash with ease and even take the lead. We buffed our speed until Dash was on the point of a Sonic Rainboom. She managed to do it and I did a sonic boom of my own. But I had the lead. I landed and said:

"What a race. I haven't felt so free in a long time."

"And I was able to finally do the Sonic Rainboom...but how in the heavens of hay were you able to keep up with me?" Dash asked confused.

"No idea. Maybe I should ask Gladir about this tomorrow" I said. It was almost night so we decided to go back to our respective houses. When we reached the hill, Dash said:

"Well...see you soon" and flew to her cloud.

"Bye" I called behind her and enetered the house. It was fully furnished and not a single piece of dust could be seen. I looked around the house and even the cupboards were full with food. And of course I checked the horn. It was still there on the chimney. It actully looked like the only thing that hadn't been dusted.

Knock Knock Knock

I went to the door and opened it, saying:

"Yes?"

It was actually Rainbow Dash with a funny face. She said:

"H..hi Dan. You know, I said earlier I'll see you later and is later so I came to see you and...look...I want to ask you if I can possibly sleep here tonight?"

"Sure you can Dash. You can come by amytime you want" I said with a smile.

"Heh heh...thanks" she said.

She looked around the house for a couple of minutes and the we went to get some sleep. After I undressed and got some pyjamas...I forgot to mention the fact that even the wardrobes were full with clothes, I got in bed. Dash came up to the bed, and a smiled, before making her some place so she can sleep. She got in and put her hooves around my neck and her head on my chest. We stood like this for some time, before I felt my T-shirt getting wet. I looked at Dash and I saw she was crying. With some concern I asked:

"Dash...is something wrong?"

She stood like that for a moment before talking through her sniffs:

"I...am scared Dan. Everyone expects so much from us. We didn't even start training and...I'm scared. They only see a war...or what you want to call it...even if Celestia didn't say a thing. But I'm scared for me...for us...for you. What if I lose you in the battle? What would I do then?"

"Oh Dash...there is nothing to be scared about...at least not yet. Don't worry...I'll always be here for you and, no matter what, I will protect you and Equestria" I said giving her a warm smile and a kiss on her forehead. "Here...let me sing you a song I like quite a lot" I added.  
>With a soft voice I began:<p>

_"So close no matter how far_

_ Couldn't be much more from the hearth_

_ Forever trusting who we are_

_ And nothing else matters._

_ Never opened myself this way_

_ Life is ours, we live it our way_

_ All these words I don't just say_

_ And nothing else matters._

_ Trust I seek adn I find in you_

_ Every day for us something new_

_ Open mind for a different view_

_ And nothing else matters._

_ Never cared for what they do_

_ Never cared for waht they know_

_ But I know..._

_ So close no matter how far_

_ Couldn't be much more from the hearth_

_ Forever trusting who we are_

_ And nothing else matters._

_ Never cared for what they do_

_ Never cared for waht they know_

_ But I know..._

_ Never opened myself this way_

_ Life is ours, we live it our way_

_ All these words I don't just say_

_ And nothing else matters._

_ Trust I seek adn I find in you_

_ Every day for us something new_

_ Open mind for a different view_

_ And nothing else matters._

_ Never cared for what they say_

_ Never cared for games they play_

_ Never cared for what they do_

_ Never cared for what they know_

_ And I know..._

_ So close no matter how far_

_ Couldn't be much more from the hearth_

_ Forever trusting who we are_

_ And nothing else matters."_

After I finished, Dash looked at me and said:

"Dan, how do you know every damn time what to say?"

"I don't...I just thought you might like the song" I said with a smirk.

"Ohh...you little..." she said with an evil grin and gave me a full kiss on the lips. We kissed for quite some time, until I felt her tongue requesting access to my mouth. I complied and gave her entrance. When out togues met, it was like we were back on the dance floor. THey waltzed together in complicated patterns for another long period of time. After we broke the kiss for air, Dash said:

"Let's get some sleep though. We have to start training tomorrow. And Daniel..."

"I don't mind you sleeping here until teh battle starts" I completed her thought.

She smiled and said:

"I love you Daniel, now and forever"

"I love you too and I will until the end of time. I promise to protect you, no matter what" I answered giving her another kiss on the forehead. She smilled and snuggeled closer to me. She fell asleep almost instantly, while I was going with my hand through her mane. After several minutes of watching her, I let myself get carried by my trail of thoughts: will I be able to protect her and everyone in Equestria? I don't know...but I must do it. For my new friends. For my new family. For my new love. For Rainbow Dash and all the other ponies in Equestria...I must protect them. With that last thought, the dream world got me and a restfull night awaited.

-Meanwhile...some very far away from Equestria, in a tent-

"Lord MOrbidus, the boy fell asleep" a goblin magician said, as he was looking in his crystal globe.

"Very well. We shall begin then" said a humanoid creature with red dragon wings. (For those who did not guess it yet, the Evil is called Lord MOrbidus).

"Sir, we have a little problem...something is blocking our transmision. We can't haunt the dreams of the boy" another gnome magician said.

"WHAT?! What can block your magic, you little useless pieces of goblin meat?" Lord MOrbidus asked very angry.

"W...we don't know. It is something we never encountered before. We will have to stop transmitting for now and make some investigations" the first magician said.

"Well, why are you still here?! Go and investigate. NOW!" Lord Morbidus ordered.

Both magicians run almost crying from the throne room and went to investigate.

"Celestia, what are you planning this time?" Lord Morbidus asked himself.

**Hope you liked it. Send me a review if you did and a PM if you see any spelling mistakes.**

**The song of this chapter, if you didn't get it, it is one of my favourites, "Nothing else matters" by Metallica.**

**Quote of the day:" If this snow doesn't stop the school tomorrow, I am going to jump in it in boxers" a friend of mine said after it snowed for three days. Guess what? School is closed. That lucky bastard :)))**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi everyone. Here is the latest chapter. This is what anime fans knowvas a cannon chapter, where Dash and Daniel will...* puts fist in mouth to stop from talking, then says* Almost spoiled the fun for you. Go on and read. Enjoy.**

Chapter 7 : Look for the truth

"You will never escape ali..." Lord Morbidus said, before his image melted and Dash face appeared in front of my eyes. It smiled and said:

"You protect me, I protect you."

Then I opened my eyes. It was early morning. Perhaps a little to early. The night was not gone yet. Dash was still in my arm and sleeping. Men, I really like when she sleeps like that, I told myself. I decided to spend some more time with her before getting up and starting the day. However, the weather had a different idea. I saw a flash of light and then heard the thunder. Looks like a thunderstorm, and not a small one, I thought. This was going to be a funny day. And a hard one too. Today we were going to start the training. I have no idea how and where, but it looked like I was on my way to become Knight and Dash was on her way to become a Scout.

That is all I had time to think about, before another thunder, this time much more powerful, could be heard. Dash began to stir in her sleep and slowly woke up. She yawned a couple of time, before kissing me on the right cheek and saying:

"Good morning. What's with all the noise?"

"Nothing to worry about. Just a serious thunderstorm" I said.

"Hmm...strange. There are no thunderstorms planned until the end of the week. What has gotten into the weather ponies?" Dash said more to herself than to me.

"Eeeeh...who knows? Maybe Big Mac needed some more water for the farm so he asked for a storm that would become a downpour and help his apple trees" I said, taking a guess.

Dash didn't look very convinced but shrugged it off. She got out of bed and said:

"So...what should we get for breakfast? I am in a mood to cook right now"

"Well, you surprise me" I answered with a sly smile. She looked at me and laughed. Then she said:

"Fine then. But you keep me company in the kitchen."

"We have a deal then. Let me just use the restroom and get some not-so-smelly clothes" I said keeping my smile. In les than 10 minutes I was ready and we went in the kitchen. Dash began taking ingredients and adding them to her mixture. I had no idea what she was cooking. While I was looking at her cooking, I remembered the dream I had last night and how she appeared in it. I said:

"Dash...I had a dream last night and you were in it too."

"Hmm...what a coincidence. I had one too and you were in it too. And it also was a scary evil thing that had red wings and stuff and that injured you and almost killed you. So I had to protect you and I had to get rid of that piece of...Dan, are you okay? You don't look very well. You are as white as a sheet of paper" Dash said turning to me and putting a hoof on my head.

"I...I am fine...I think...but w...we had the same dream. What could this mean?" I asked a little shocked. I was also wondering how long has this been happening.

"I am not sure, but I think we don't need to focus on this right now. We should ask Gladir if this happens again. Now, we must eat so that we will be in shape for the training today. I really wonder what must we do. I made us some fresh apple pie with chocolate. It should be readdy right about...now" Dash said. And right on queue, the bell rang signaling that the food was ready. She took the pie out and placed it on the table to cool for a couple of minutes before we ate it. Then, she sat right beside me and said:

"So don't be so surprised that we had the same dream...it might have been the necklaces Celestia gave us. Maybe we can send images to each others when we use them."

I nodded, but I was not convinced. When I woke up, my necklace was on my arm, not around my neck, but maybe touching it gave the same result. Anyway, I shrugged it off, because the pie was ready to be eaten. Dash put a slice on my plate and one on hers and we began eating. After a couple of bites, I said:

"I make better pancakes, but your pie is by far better than mine."

"He he he...thanks" Dash said with a blush. We finished eating amd went to the livingroom, where the chimney was. The window there facend the storm, and in front of it were two big pillows that weren't there when I left for Canterlot. Maybe the builders put them there. I decided to leave them there, and then I took the horn. It was quite heavy for its size and I wondered what was it made of. With the horn in one hand, and facing the window I began concentraiting. After a couple of seconds, I felt something hind of touching my mind. It felt really odd. Then, the it spoke in Gladir's voice:

'I see you managed to make contact. That is good. Now, let me bring Dash in this conversation.'

I looked at Dash as her eyes grew and then I heard Gladir's voice again:

'Good. Now both of you do exactly as I say. Take a seat on the pillows in front of you with your legs crossed.'

I sat down, and Dash sat by my side.

'Now close your eyes and concentrate on your breathing. When you feel light-headed, open your eyes' Gladir said.

I looked at Dash and she looked at me. Then we closed our eyes, and we began concentrating. After a couple of minutes, I began to feel light-headed, so I opened my eyes. And so did Dash. But we were no longer in my house. In fact we were in a white place. Then Gladir appeared in front of us. He said:

'Welcome to the Dreamscape. This is a world created by my mind in which I included yours. Your bodies are still in the house on the pillows, but are dreaming. Here is where I will be teaching you what you need to know. After you learn how to do it here, you must learn by yourselves how to do them in the real world. Don't worry...learning here is the hard part. Any questions before we begin?'

Neither me nor Dash had any questions up until now, so we shook our heads.

'Good. Now, Daniel please put your wings on and then we can begin' Gladit said.

After I did, Gladir smiled and began:

'Now we are ready to begin. Daniel, you will be learning sword fighting, archery and how to do some magic to vanquish your enemy. Rainbow Dash, you will be learning camouflage, stealth and also a little magic so you won't be detected. Now, since I must train both of you at the same time...'

Gladir focused and created a copy of himself. Then he said:

'Daniel please follow me, and Rainbow Dash, please follow the other me.'

Gladir started walking in a direction while his clone walked in the other one. I looked at Dash and said:

'Good luck!'

'You too!' she answered and we both began following our Gladir.

After we were quite out of shouting range, Gladir said to both of us:

"Each of you must go through a very hard training to become what they must become. All this training is based on magic, so that is what you will learn first. To learn about magic, you must first understand magic. Magic is the force of your mind. Each mind had its own strength and weakness. Each magician must find theirs and protect them for they are the core of their magic. The first thing a magician does in his training is aknowledging him or her own self and knowing what his or her limits are. Only after that, a magician can think about learning spells. To make this training faster, because the time is against us, we will go through the first lesson and the second one at the same time. The second one consists of uniting two or more minds for a pourpouse. So this is your first task in the training. Both of you must fight all their fears before opening your minds to one another. Since you both are in the same DreamScape, it won't be difficult, but in the real world it is. You have 10 seconds to connect your minds, before I give you the next instruction. Ohh...one more thing, you might want to sit down for this part of the training."

We seated and I began concentrating. I imagined my mind as a castle. And the task was to lower the bridge for Dash to enter. The problem was that the bridge was guarded by what I fear most: the Evil. However, it was a smaller one. And since it was my mind, I decided to just imagine him disapearing. To my surprise, it worked. I managed to lower the bridge. All I had to do now, was to wait for Dash to do the same, and then link our minds. Soon enough, I felt another mind with a lowered bridge, and I imagined a road between our minds. It was indeed Dash's mind and I could hear her thought, as she could hear my thoughts.

'Time is up. Is the link made?' Gladir asked.

'Yes' both me and Dash answered at the same time.

'Good. Now open your eyes. You will see that with one eye you see your place and with the other eye, you see the other place. If you think about blocking the view, you can easily push it aside with your mind. Do that now' Gladir added.

We did what we were told and then he said:

'Good. You learn fast. Now for the first part of your training as magicians, you must completely trust each other. In order to do that, you must both at the same time share all your memories and feelings, so that nothing unknown remains between you two. Do it when I reach three. One...Two...Three!'

At the second I released all my memories across the bridge, a torrent of images, senstions and feeling reached my mind. In a split second I knew all it was to be known about Rainbow Dash: her favourite food, her favourite feather on her right wing, her feelings for me and so much more. And so did Dash about me. Now nothing existed between us that she did not know. She suddenly said:

'Dan...why didn't you tell me that your childhood was so bad and that the girl you loved before me hurt you that bad?'

'I didn't thought it was necessary at that moment' I said in my defense.

'And why in the name of hay, didn't you tell me about those dreams sooner?' Dash asked.

'Well...they only happened twice and I intended to tell you teh first time...and the second time...but I thought you will think I am nuts...now I know I should have told you earlier, especially after the one from last night. I am sorry. Can you forgive me?'

'Of course I forgive you. Now let's get back to training' Dash said. I felt also her emotions of forgiveness and an internal smile.

'Pardon me for interupting, but I found those dreams of yours rather interesting. As I understood from your discussion, you have dream Lord Morbidus three times, but something happened the third time. Am I wrong?' Gladir asked.

'If by Lord Morbidus you refer to the Evil, then yes. And the third time, Dash managed somehow to stop him' I said.

'Interesting...very interesting. An important detail is that Lord Morbidus creates a functional connection between your two minds, so it wasn't a dream. And you say Dash stopped it? Interesting. Anyway, back to training. I'll give you ten minutes so that you can adjust to the link between you minds. From now on, during the training and the every day life, you will keep this connection running to make it stronger. Here, you will keep it open so that both of you can learn what the other one is as well as what you are doing. So, when you learn, please pass the thoughts along the link. Oh...there will be times when to many thouhts will run about. Just try to calm your minds. Now, you will both learn about defending your minds. The first thing to do is learn how a stranger's mind feels. I think both of you know since you managed to find eachothers minds. The second thing to do is creating a barrier between your thoughts and the strangers thoughts by imagining a wall that will sorround your mind and the links you have. Then you must focus on something unimportant so that is the only thought running in your mind and the stranger won't find other informations. A little tip: in life, you might need to break inside someones mind so don't run with your head in the wall. Instead try to find weaknesses and exploit them. That is exactly what an enemy would do, so try to keep your mind well protected and the only link, the one between you two, unless needs call for another link. Remember, the greater the number of links, the weaker the defence, unless the mind is trained carefully. Now try to breach each others defenses. But first sever the link' Gladir said.

We did as we were told and then Gladir said:

'Daniel, you have three seconds to build your defense. After that Dash will try to breach it.'

After three seconds, I felt the walls of my mind bombardef by blows. Slowly but steadly, a crack formed in the wall. But I was ready for it. The first and only thing that filled my mind was a potatoe. No idea why. Then I heard Dash's voice:

'A potatoe, really?' and then she began laughing.

'Good. The enemy was distracted. Now is your turn to attack. Dash, you hve three seconds' Gladir said.

After three seconds, I found Dash's mind but a thick wall was around it. However, I saw a crack somewhere at the top. I didn't even need to worry about attacking it. I went right through there. I heard Dash thoughts saying:

'If he gets through I am screwed'

I laughed and said:

'Well, you want me to bring a screwdriver? Here I am. You should pay more attention to details.'

'Fuck. How did you get in?' she asked.

'The crack over there' I said.

'Damn. It was your potatoe that distracted me' Dash defended.

'Okay. A very good try. You are cunning Daniel. You will make an exceptional mind cracker. And Dash, please focus. Now I want you to practice all we did here in the real world. This is enough for today' Gladir said.

We suddenly returned to the livingroom. My legs were stiff and so were Dash's wings. I looked at the clock. Only ten minutes passed. I looked at Dash and said:

"Can you believe that only took ten minutes?"

"What? It felt way longer than that. Maybe in our mind time passes at a different pace. Anyway, I really need to fly so I can feel my wings again. And it looks like the storm stopped for now. Want to come?" she asked.

"Yeah...I'll try some aerobatics since I am there. But first, let's try to make that link" I said. Dash nodded and we both concentrated. It took us a couple of minutes to make the link as stable as in the DreamScape. With the connection opened and feelings and sensations going back and forth, I summoned my wings amd we flew together almost as high as the clouds. I did some aerial maneuvers and Dash copyed me. Then we flew together at the fastest speed we could. We sropped in the clearing where we spent the last night before going to Canterlot. We landed and I thought:

' You want to dance? '

She just looked at me and nodded. I took her right hoof in my left hand and put my right hand under her wings, while she put her left hoof on my right shoulder. We began waltzing around on a slow song from AcDc, called "the Jack", that I was playing in my mind, and thanks to the connection, Dash could hear it too. After we finished our very enjoyable damce, we kissed with smiles on our lips. We gave our tongues their own rithm of waltz as they spun around eachother. After some minutes, we broke the kiss and flew back to my house. There I began doing some physical exercises since the next time in training I expected to use a sword, and since I tried using one when I was a little younger, I knew I needed some strength to do it. However, I was quite fit so I managed to do a couple of series of 25 push-ups and 50 turns of house. Dash counted them for me, using the thing with the eyes to see how I was doing. Then we tryed for a couple of hours to build and destroy barriers around our minds. We were getting the hang of it, because in the end we didn't manage to break the other one. When we finally decided to take lunch it was quite late for that. It was almost 8 PM, so we decided to go for dinner instead. Dash made some tasty hayburgers, that even after seeing how they were made, I couldn't hay could taste so good. I then looked around the library a little, trying to find something interesting for a read but couldn't find something that really caught my attention, so I decided to see what was Dash doing. She was outside on the grass, on her back, looking ay the stars since the sky was now clear. I lied down next to her and she put her head on my chest, still looking at the sky. After quite some time, she said:

"Dan, could you sing something?"

I thought about it for a second and then decided on humming to a random rithm, saying with my mind:

'Sorry Dash, but my mind is a little tired so I can't really think of a song roght now.'

'I like what you are humming. Please don't stop' she answered. So I kept humming to a random tone, changing the pattern a little every time. Eventually, Dash started yawning so I decided to call it a day, and took her to bed. She fell asleep almost instantly in my arms with her head on my chest. I looked at her and then I felt tiredness taking over me little by little. In the end, I went to the dream world.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter. As usual, if you liked it, leave me a review, they are always apreciated. Also, if I made any spelling mistakes please tell me through a PM.**

**The song refered in this chapter is "Look for the Truth" by Iron Maiden.**

**A little disclaimer for the previous chapter: I do NOT own the lyrics or the songs I refer to in my story. They are the property of the rightful owners.**

**Quote of the day: "You better hurry with that food or I might eat the table instead of eating at the table" a friend of mine to his mother, while we were playing LoL and talking on Skype. **

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hi there, everyone. Quick note before you read this chapter. In the summary of the story I mentioned lemons...this chapter will have some lemonade or a lime, if you want to call it that. Please note that this is my first attempt at somthing like this. If you are not in that kind of stuff, then please skip the part between the XxX-es. You have been warned :P**

**Disclaimer: All I own from this story are the OC, the other names that I invented and the story itself. Anything else belongs to their respective owners. Now, do please enjoy :D**

Chapter 8 : Dreams come true

The dream world was such a wonderful place when Lord Morbidus wasn't around. Me and Dash managed to maintain the link through our sleep, so while our bodies were asleep, our minds talked and dreamed together. Right now we were deciding on creating a place only ours in our minds: a sanctuary, a fortress of last resort. We decided upon a mountain hogj up the sky. The mountain will have a 50 meters high wall around it, and the wall will be 20 meters wide. It will be made out of pure diamond and no one that breaks into our mind will be able to go through, under, or over it, unless they had the password. It would be our last fortress. On the top of the mountain, a field of smarald green grass will tickle out feets and hooves. The grass moved because of the calming breeze. In the back of the cliff, there was an entire pine forest that looked very much like the Everfree Forest. And on the clif was the pine under which we slept together for the first time. And under it were we, looking over at the sun rising. We were just sitting, in each others arms, and talking about ideas on how to keep our link safer in case of an attack, what might kwe possibly learn today and what could we do after the training. Just as Dash told me her idea, the sun signaled the beginning of a new day, so we both woke up with a smile on our faces, visibly proud of what we discovered and what we were able to do. We decided to go for something to eat, before entering the DreamScape for our training that day. I observed that since last night, my body felt a little more fit and muscular, but I have no idea why. Dash made some more hayburgers for us to eat, and after quickly eating them, we went in the livingroom to start the training that day. With the connection strong between our minds, we sat on the pillows, with the strange horn between us, and we focused on it. In a matter of seconds we found ourselves in the DreamScape, where Gladir was waiting. He said:

'Good morning! Ready for a little test?'

'Sure...what kind of test?' I asked.

'I will try to enter your minds while your link is active, and you must defend. You have three seconds' Gladir said.

In those three seconds, I managed to tell Dash:

'Hide the sanctuary and guard your half of the diamond wall. Think only of a rose, in case he gets through.'

We just finished hiding the sanctuary and rising the wall, when we felt a strong pressure on the wall. The attack tried to find a weakness or to destroy the wall completely. The pressure tried over, under and direct attack, but it didn't work. In the meantime, we were both thinking of a rose just in case. The pressure stopped and Gladir said:

'Good. I see that your defenses are good. If I may ask, how did you manage to create them?'

I smiled and answered:

'We kept the link opened during all yesterday, including the night. While our bodies were resting, our minds talked and dreamed through the link and we tried to improve our defenses. This is the result' I answered.

'Quite an interesting use of this power. It is for the first time I hear about a link being maintained through sleep. You two did quite a good job on this, but remeber one thing: your mental powers are stronger here so you could maintain the wal but on the outside, it might crumble to dust. Also, your wall resisted to one attacker, but what if there were more than one? More like six well trained magicians? You did well, but you must improve your defenses every day...now...Let's see how you two do on the attack part. I will have three seconds to defend, and then you attack' Gladir said.

We gave him three seconds, after which, we attacked. There was a very strong wall defending his mind. We first tried brute force on the entire length of the wall, then focusing only on a point small enough for us to get entrance. We almost broke through with the point, but the wall regenerated itself. We truied under it and over it, but the only point weak enough was the tip of the wall. We managed to create a crack amd we gained access. There was only a message of congratulations and we stopped the attack. Gladit said with a smile:

'Good. You used your common sense and determined where the wall was the weakest. You managed to get through, and for that, I congratulate you, but you won't always be able to attack or defend like a team. Sometimes, one of you must attack while the other one defenses and vice-versa. So you two still have a great deal of training to do to improve your individual skills. And now for the training of the day: Daniel, you will be learning swordfighting and how to summon your light sword, while Dash will learn how to conceal herself at any momen and how to change the disguise in a split of a second. Please keep the link opened and follow your respective *me* to start your training' Gladir said, creating a clone of himself. We followed our teachers and we got to the spots from yesterday. Gladir asked:

'Are you ready?'

'Yes' me and Dash said at the same time, signaling we were in perfect sync with each other.

**-With Daniel (Daniel's POV)-**

'Okay Daniel, listen very carefully to what I am saying. This training is very easy. All you have to do, is to imagine that you want a sword. The magic you unlocked when you appeared in Equestria will allow you to do that. You must surely noticed some changes in your body: you are faster, stronger and smarter than you were before. Try it now' Galdir said.

I concentrated and remebered a legend that was very popular in my world: The Legend of King Arthur. And I remebered about Excalibur, King's Arthur sword. I always liked how that sword looked like, so I imagined I had that sword. Gladir was right, the sword appeared in my hand exactly as I imagined it. I decided that since this would be my sword, it should have a proper name. After a couple of seconds, I said:

'That's so cool. I'm gonna name it Silverfang.'

'That is a really awesome name. Remind me to name my sword too.' Dash said.

'Sure thing Dash' I answered.

'Good. You managed to summon a sword that looks exactly like Excalibur' Gladir said.

'And how in the name of Merlin do you know about Excalibur?' I asked.

Gladir chuckeled and said:

'Well, of course I know about it. After all I helped Arthur get the sword.'

'Wait a second...you are Merlin?' I asked in a very curious tone.

'The one and only. You might wonder why am I here. The thing is, I found the same mirror as you and before dying in our world, I was transported here. And since I already knew quite a lot of magic, I managed to do something in the meaning of distroying Lord Morbidus, but I failed my ultimate mission. Anyway, let's get back to training. As I was about to say, thid was the easy part. And now for the hard part' Gladir said as he summoned a very interesting sword. It was made of pure light and was impressive.

'You will fight me until you learn how to do this the proper way. You will learn to block, attack, side-step and any other moves that you can think of...all that you need to defeat me. A little detail...you can do magical attacks with your sword when you attack to increase your speed, power, range and so on. The sky is the limit. But for now we will just spar until you get the hang of it. En guarde!' Gladir said. I had a very bad feeling about this. I was going to get out of here full of bruises.

**-With Dash (Dash's POV) -**

'Okay Dash. Now listen carefully. The art of camuflage is really simple. All you had to do is imitate your environment. Just like this' Gladir said as the area around us chaged to some forrest land and his figure begam to fade. After a couple of seconds, only his outline could be seen. After another second that disappeared too. The Gladir started moving. As he moved, I could see right through him. His outline was only visible for a split second as he moved. After he showed me, he appeared and said:

'Now keep in mind, it can only last as long as you are focused and this doesn't cover the sounds you make, so you must be carefull where you step or what you touch. I also suggest you wear some clothes on your hooves so that your walking is muffled. Now, to do this, you only need to focus on the enviroment around you and the magic will do the rest. Try now with that tree.'

I went to the tree and focused. After a couple of seconds I saw my hooves starting to fade and then my body. It took me a couple if tries before managing to do this properly, and just as I was about to move, I heard Daniel say:

'That's so cool. I'm gonna name it Silverfang.'

I smiled and said:

'That is a really awesome name. Remind me to name my sword too.'

He responded with: 'Sure thing Dash.' That is why I love him. He is always so full of care and wants to make me happy. He never said no to me, instead he added some more fun to life. I wish I could do something for him that would be fun for both...and I think I got just the thing.

'Rainbow Dash, please focus. Try to blend with your enviroment again and move around a little so that we can see what can you do' Gladir said.

I began focusing again and after some time I managed to move with my outline just a little visible. Then the hard part started. Gladir begun changing enviroments and I had to change the spell every second to maintain myself blended. He went at this for quite a big amount of time...*some more time latter*... And now I am finally able to change in a split of a second. Gladir said:

'Good. You learn fast. Keep in mind to work on the sound part. Now let's go and see how Daniel is doing.'

***some more time later* -Daniel's POV-**

'Okay. I see you begun adding your own moves to the basic ones. That is good. Just remember about balance and trying to find an opening. I also begun to see you added some more power to you blows using magic. Not bad. You, however have a lot of bruises. Let me heal you up before Rainbow Dash comes over, or she might just kill me...again' Gladir said with a smile. Then a pillar of light came from the sky and healed me up.

'So...you do realise me and Dash had the connection opened and that she knows all I know, including about the bruises?' I asked.

'Umm...I forgot about that. Hmmm...it looks like I need more training myself' Gladir said with a smile. I laughed and then asked:

'So this healing thing...can be done in battle?'

'I never tryed to use it in battle. Here is easy because you have only a feeling of being bruised so that can be changed...but real wounds...I can't imagine how much energy you would need for a single wound...however...there is a...nevermind that...my old mind gets the best of me. Don't try healing or you will be killed for using too much energy at once. And don't even think about bringing dead people back to life' Gladir said.

'Ohhh...' I was a little down at not being able to heal a wound.

'Listen Daniel, unknown are the ways of magic ( if you got the reference, you go give yourself a cookie :D). There is no telling what magic can surely do or not do, but up until now, that is all we know' Gladir assured me. 'Now, I think it is enough for today. And here comes Dash. I hope you learned about camuflage too. See you tomorrow. Don't forget to train and work on your defense as well mentaly as in swordplay' he added. And then I woke back in the livingroom. I looked at the time. It took us longer this time and my arms felt tired. Dash also woke up and said:

"So...any ideas what should we do today? After all is only almost lunch."

"Hmm...I might have a few...what do you say if we go see if Big Mac lets us go for a walk in the orchard?" I suggested.

"What are you planning?" Dash asked with a smile. She tried to guess my thoughts through the link, but I hid them well. After failing, she said:

"Fine then. Surprise me!"

"It will be my pleasure" I said. We went our and flew together to the Sweet Apple Acres. We landed in the front of the barn, inside which Big Mac usually worked. I went inside to talk to him, while Dash waited for me outside. As I expected, Big Mac was there working. I said:

"Morning, Big Mac! How ya doin'?"

"Morning, Dan! I'm fine. How 'bout ya?" he saif facing me.

"All good. Look, I wanted to ask you a favor. Can me and Dash have a walk through your orchard and play a little hide-n-seek? Maybe even have an apple or two?" I asked.

"Yeeep. Sure ya can. We have many apples anyway. " he said.

" Thanks a lot. By the way...have you got any news from AJ?" I asked.

"Besides knowing that she is in some secrete training and that I am supposed to get in the army next week, no" Big Mac said.

"Oh...okay. Thanks again" I said.

"No problem" he said turning back to his work.

I left Big Mac to his stuff, and returned to Rainbow Dash. We took off and flew hand in hoof towards the orchard. We landed under a big apple tree, and I took out of the backpack I always had with me when I leave the house, a blanket which I set down. Dash smiled and said:

"So that's what you were planning to do: a picknic."

"Well...yeah, but actually I planned something fun that would also let us do our training" I answered while I was getting some big, red, shiny apples from the tree.

"Like what? How could you make camouflage fun?" Dash asked very curious.

"Simple. We play hide-n-seek. The one that hides has to camouflage himself because the area in which we play is very small" I said after I chose 4 apples from the tree.

"Hmmm...and why didn't I think about that?" Dash asked laughing. Then she took an apple and we ate. After finishing one apple each, we decided to keep one each for later. I said:

"So...you hide and I try and find you." I counted to ten, and then looked around. No one was there. Or so it seemed. Then I heard a twig snap. I looked around and saw a very subtle ouline near the top of the tree. I should have imagined she would go up. I said:

"You might be invisible, but you clearly need to work at not making a sound."

"Damn, you got me. My turn" she said getting off and starting counting to ten.

Now, since I knew how to conceal myself from the training, I just had to not move a muscle and not make a sound as my outline faded onthe other part of the tree.

"Ten! Ready or not, here I come" I heard Dash saying. Then she started mumbling to herself while she walked. I could hear everything she was saying:

"Let's see...I can't see him...and he stands in one place so I can't hear him...but what about his smell...I bet I can smell him."

Damn, forgot about that, I thought. I didn't move as I looked at Dash smelling the air like a dog and moving towards me. She stopped her face on my chest and said:

"Okay...my turn now, sweety."

We played around, trying different tricks to make ourselves undetectable. This went up until early evening. By that time, we figured out that before concealing ourselves we had to rub some of the grass and earth from around the place we were to hide our scent. As for the sound, we had to be very careful where we stepped. As for the actual camouflage, we could do it faster and faster, and somehow we managed to make the outline much more less visible. It could be only seen if you were looking fron very close. We even managed to keep the spell up while flying and smoothly change it when we went through clouds. We went back to the barn and thanked Big Mac again and then we went back home. We saw yesterday morning that at the back of the house there was a flat round area, and I came with the idea to make our training ground. So we landed there and I said:

"Hope you enjoyed my idea. Now what do you say if we have a duel?"

"Indeed I did" Dash said and then mumbeled something to herself.

"Come again?" I said.

"Ohh...nothing. Okay. Let me call my sword." Dash said a little pink on her face. Something was up. I shrugged it off however, as we would discus it later. Instead I said:

"Don't forget that you wanted to name it too."

"Ohh...yeah. Almost forgot about that. Let's see now..." Dash said.

She concentrated a bit and a sword began to form in her hoof. It was almost as big as Silverfang, but a little thinner. And it was a metalic-bluish-white. Dash said:

"It will be called Moonlight."

"Awesome name. And fitting too" I said as I showed her the moon that just shone over us. I called my sword, Silverfang, and the moon's light reflected from both our swords. The visual effect was stunning. Then Dash broke the moment by lauching an attack. I blocked it and together we sparred. When we were almost to touch each other with the blades, we would stop so that we won't get injured. After some time, my arms begun to tire, and Dash was breathing really hard. I said with a grin on my face:

"Should we call tgis a draw and retire so I can get a shower? Man, I am making rhimes."

"Sure we can" Dash said laughing and sending Moonlight away just as I did with Silverfang.

We bowed to one another, and then went inside. We ate the other two apples that I brought in my backpack and Dash quickly made some hayburgers. Then I said:

"Okay...I go to take a shower before bed."

"Okay" Dash said.

I went in the bathroom and undressed. The shower was quite big and with a glass window. I went in and started the water. It was very good. Just as I was about to wash my hair, I felt a hoof on my back. I almost jumped out of my skin and said:

**XxX - this is the mark for lemony content**

"Dash, what in the name are you doing in the shower while I wash?"

"Weeeeeeeeeellllll... I see you are almost done and I thought I give you a hoof to reach where you can't...plus I felt kinda lonely. And why are you not facing me when I talk to you?"

"Because...I am naked and-" I tried to say.

"Umm...you do realise you shared allyour mind with mine and that includes images of yourself in every way you have been up until now, don't you?" Dash interrupted me.

I thought about it for a second and she was quitr right, so I turned around and she gave me a hug so I said:

"I love you Dash and I always will"

"I love you too" Dash said as she kissed me passionately. Her tongue requested acces to mine so I gave her and together our tongues danced a wild dance. While we were kissing, Dash pushed me down on my back and under the pleasant water of the shower, while she was lying on my chest. I felt her hooves massaging my chest and going lower and lower, until I yelped and asked through our mental link:

'Dash...are you doing what I think you are doing?'

'Shhhhh...I love you' Dash said sending me waves of love through the link and pure pleasure as she began stroking me. While I was in exctasy, I sent waves of pleasure to Dash and she began smiling through the kiss and said to me:

'You are the best thing that ever happened to me and you always made me happy since the moment you looked so funny while falling. Now is my turn.'

'As long as you are happy, I am too' I managed to say between the waves of pleasure. I could feel her smile getting bigger as she sent me an idea through the link. I just asked:

'Are you sure?'

Her only answer was a smile that grew into a grin as she broke the kiss and turned around, giving me a view of her marehood. Then I could feel her hot breathing on my crotch. I couldn't really believe we were doing this. And then I yelped again, as I felt my malehood entering a hot and moist cave. And then Dash started moving her head up and down. Comparing to this, what I felt before was nothing. Only two proposition escaped my mind:

'I love you Dash, and as you do to me, I shall do to you.'

Then I moved my face closer to her marehood. The smell was very pleasant and in the confusion created by my pleasure, I found myself tasting the denied passion fruit. It was very rewarding, as Dash started moaning both physically and mentally. This only increased our pleasure and we both succumbed to it, giving one to the other to the full extent of our possibility. Then I started feeling my muscle spasming a little, so I told Dash through our link:

'I can't hold it much longer. I'm gonna-'

'Me too' was all she could say and I felt my malehood exploring the cave even farther, before our minds exploded in a show of fireworks that lasted almost half a minute. When it finished, I said:

"I love you Dash so much!"

"I love you too, more than you could imagine" Dash said with a smile.

**XxX**

Ten minutes later, we were both completely clean off all the things that happened that day and I just dressed in a simple white T-shirt and comfortable pair of pats as I got ready to go to bed. Me and Dash lyed together in bed, under the pleasant covers. Dash was with her head on my chest and I asked her:

"So this was what you were mumbling when we were about to spar?"

"Heh heh heh...yeah" she said chuckling and getting closer to me. "Will you be so sweet as to sing me a song tonight?" she added.

I thought for a little and then I begun singing in a low voice. When I finished the song, Dash was almost asleep, so I whispered to her:

"I'll be waiting under the pine" and then I fell asleep almost instantly. I met with Dash under the pine, where we sat together talking, thinking and enjoying eachother's company. Such a beautiful place is the dream world.

**Hope you enjoyed it. If you did, a review is very much apreciated. Any spelling mistakes, please send them in a PM. For those how didn't get the referenced in the text regarding magic, it was similar to something Yoda said in Star Wars : "Unknown are the ways of the Force". (Ofc, this belongs to the respective owner :D )**

**The song refered in this chapter: "Dreams come true" by Hammerfall.**

**Quote of the day: "So this shooking of the Earth can mean two things: either there is an eartquake, or your mama fell out of bed" a friend of mine to me, after we discussed a little about Borderlands 2 and that crazy robot in it, Claptrap. (Ofc, this belongs to the respective owner :D )**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi everyone. Here is the next chapter. Enjoy.**

Chapter 9 : You and I

The night went by with the speed of light. When the time had come for us to wake up, we had already planned the day. It would be quite fun if nothing except training will spoil it.

I woke up a little before Dash, because she wanted to add something to our sactuary. She wouldn't tell me what so I let her do it alone. As I was waiting for her, I kept going with my fingers through her rainbow mane. That was the moment when I realised the rainbow was my favourite color to say so. I continued caressing her mane while I was looking outside at the pegassi that were clearing the azure sky of clouds. Just then I felt a kiss on my left cheek, and Dash said with a smile:

"Morning sweetie. Did you slept well?"

"Hmmm...I don't know. You tell me" I answered with a grin.

Dash grinned too and gave me another kiss on the cheek, before her stomach growled for food. Her face was reder than a tomato. It was so funny that I barely contained myself. Instead of laughing, I said:

"Looks like someone is keen to start the day. Pancakes sound good to you?"

"Heh heh...yeah, they sound awesome" Dash said a little embarased. I just made a bigger grin and gave her a kiss on her forehead, before going to the kitchen to make the pancakes. In ten minutes, I managed to make about eight, so I took them back in the bedroom. Dash wasn't there. I went outside to fund her flying around and doing a couple of tricks and loopings. When she landed, she said:

"I...umm...wanted to...test...the...wind...yeah, the wind. To make sure that...the weather ponies do their job."

"Riiight...have a pancake" I said as I pushed the plate under her nose. She took one and devoured it. She did the same with the other two, whie I just had time to eat mine. We went back inside and into the livingroom. I took the horn, placed between us while we were on the pillows and concentrated. Soon I and Dash were back in the DreamScape. Gladir was waiting for us. He smiled and said:

'Good morning. I hope you two had a...restfull sleep.'

We both nodded and Gladir continued:

'Good. We have a lot to do today. Please follow me.' He divided again in two and I and Dash followed our respective teacher.

'So, did you two work on your swordfighting skills and camouflage?' Gladir asked me while we were walking.

'In fact, we did. We managed to make our camouflage undetectableif we stay still, and the outline is only visible when moving and when you are close enough. Also, we found something that could have been problematic. The smell of the person or pony trying to hide' I said.

'Ahh, yes. I wondered if you found about that little detail. And if I'm not mistaken, you managed to do something about that?' Gladir asked.

'Indeed we did. We used the smells around us to conceal our own' I answered.

'A very interesting idea. I never thought about it. But you are aware you could have made it disappear with magic?' Gladir asked.

'Wait...can you do that? Why didn't you tell Dash this yesterday?' I asked a little confused.

'Becaue that is a part of today's training. While you will be sparring with me for real now, that means to use all you have to injure me, my sword however won't injure you and I will teach you a spell on how to make a sword harmless, and archery, Dash will be learning stealth. Stealth refers to controlling your smell while invisible, as well as the sounds you make and the heat you produce. But this, you will be learning later, for now call upon your powers, summon your wings and sword, and let's fight' Gladir said as he summoned a pair of Archangel wings and Excalibur to fight me. Out match started by us moving around each other, waiting for the other one to make the first move.

'Good. You learned patience. Never make the first move when fighting, because you will expose your style. The best thing is to defend the first couple of blows and after seeing the way your enemy moves and uncovering his pattern of blows, then you attack' Gladir said as he lounged towards me. I blocked his attack and saw an opening towards his left shoulder. However, his speed was greater than mine. He blocked it with ease, than said:

'Never lounge directly into battle, think before you act. The opening you saw was intended, so that I block it and take your sword out of your hand. Also, build more speed. I told you before, and if I didn't, you can use magic to improve the areas with problems, but remeber what are your limits. Now...en garde.' And again Gladir attacked. This time, I didn't attack blindly. After finding a real opening, I was able to injure Gladir. His image faded for a second and then he was healed. He said:

'Good. I see you learned observation. And don't worry about speed right now. Now...since we finished with this, and I expect Rainbow Dash finished witg revising the training from yesterday, are you two ready for the one today?'

'We are' me and Dash said at the same time. Then Gladir added:

'The training today will be a little different. Please keep the connection at all times defended. While we will train today, the other Knights will attack your minds. The times at which they attack will be random and the one they attack will also be random, as will be the number of attackers. And now, let us begin.'

I quickly told Dash:

'Listen, I think they will attack both of us at the same time and then one at a time. They will want to see the defense of the link. Let's use the same kind of defense as our sanctuary. Protect your mind at the cpunt of three. One, two, three. Ready?'

'Yes. The rose. Concentrate upon the rose' Dash said. We continued to send each other informarion on our trainings, as Gladir made me summon a bow. It seems that when it comes to magic, only imagination is the limit. Luckyly for me, I am a good archer. Back on earth, I used to go and shoot targets every week, and the moving targets were my speciality. As for Dash, she learned that magic comes from hearth and that some things are only possible if you truly believe in you. She was quite skilled at being stealthy by now, and she evem managed to hide the sound of her wings. We were just about to finish our lesson, when Gladir said:

'Okay. We are almost done. But, since I wasn't able to test both of you at swordfightying, me and my double here, will fight a two on two fight. Rainbow Dash, please summon your sword and let us fight. En guarde!'

We fought Gladir for what seemed like a couple of hours, until we felt an overwhelming pressure on our minds. We almost stopped the fight, when Gladir said:

'Defend yourselves. If you can't do it both mentally and phisically at the same time, you will be dead.'

He then attacked with all his might. We managed to deflect his blows, but we fely our minds exploding. Then an idea came to me. I changed our mind wall. Instead of absorbing the attacks of the enemy minds, the wall now reflected them. Dash kept her concentration at maximum, defending our minds, while I tried my hardest to deflect all blows. I even started using camouflage to my advantage. I made myself invisible a couple of times and appeared right behind Gladir. While doing so, I made no sound and he couldn't hear me. However, he deflected my blows. Suddenly, the pressure on our minds stopped and Dash joined me in battle. Then, the pressure dubled. I managed to say:

'Dash...my mind is attacked. Fight him' before she jumped in front of me and used all she learnt to defend me. She even called upon a bow and fired a couple of shots that, if it weren't for a magic defense around Gladir, would have hit him in the head. Meanwhile, I was fightying a mental war against the other Knights. Then, a bright idea came to me. I opened my mind and theyanaged to enter. All they saw was a wall on which it said:

"If you expose yourself to everyone, they will consider you normal. If you show them something, they won't be interested. If you want to hide something, show it to them, and they will ignore it. Thus truth becomes a lie and the armor that protects you."

I saw them looking around and starting clapping whem they saw themselves caught in an ilussion of my mind. They were in a chamber in the center of my mind and they were isolated from the rest. They were captives.

Then Dash said:

'Dan, open your eyes.' I opened them and looked around. Gladir was looking at me wide eyed and he dropped his sword. Then he begam clappin too. Then he said with a smile:

'You managed to defeat all the other Knights on your own. And they didn't even realised it until it was too late. Please let them go. Good. Very good. And Dash managed to defend you very well. You two are really making progress. We are finished for today.'

Them me and Dash woke to reality. Dash said:

"That was the most briliant idea when it comes to defense. You get a pie for this. But you got to help me bake it. Tp the kitchen."

**-Meanwhile, in the DreamScape-**

'Gladir, this kid is briliant. He might indeed be the one that defeats Lord Morbidus. And the connection between their minds...I have never seen something like this. What could it be?' on of the pony Knights said.

'To be honest with you...I haven't the foggiest. This is the first time I see such strategies in action, and the first time I hear about a connection that can be maintained during sleep. They might indeed be the ones' Gladir said and smiled. 'A thing is certain. I wouldn't want to be the one that tries to break into their minds' he added amd bursted out laughing, as did the others.

**-Back in Ponyville, on the hill-**

"That was a delicious pie, Dash. Even if I know how to make it, you still make it better than me. Now, what should we do?" I asked as I just finished my pie. Dash kissed me on the cheek and said with a smile:

"A small flight will keep you in shape. Plus, I need you to show me how to hit moving targets with the bow, while I am moving too. I can't seem to be able to aim fast enough."

"Sounds very good to me" I said and together we flew out of the house and towards the cyan sky. While we were enjoying our flight, I asked:

"By the way, what will you use as target?"

"You" she said with a grin. I stopped in mid-air and I looked at her concerned. She just looked back, smiled and said:

"Got you" and she began to laugh. I caught up laughing and said:

"Good one. I didn't see it coming."

We flew together doing loopings at the sam time and several others aerobatics, until we reached the clearing where the pine we loved and the lake were. I looked around, summoned Silverfang, cut a trunk in cicular slices and said:

"Now you have targets. I will throw them as you run or fly around, and you will try and hit them."

"Are you sure you don't want to hold them while I shoot?" she asked laughing. "I'm ready" she said then, becoming serious. She summoned a bow and some arrows, and I began throwing the discs. She took off and tried to shoot a couple while flying. She missed both times and I said:

"Try not to hit where they are now, but where they will be when the arrow will reach them."

She nodded and I threw a couple more. She hit them near the edges. I threw another two and she hit them a little closer to the center. Then, I came with a new idea. I put the rest of the targets aroud the clearing, suspended by the branches of the trees, and made something that resembeled an obstacle course. Then, me and Dash took turns in going through the obstacle course at high speeds and hitting the targets. At the fifth time, we both did it perfectly. We decided to do a couple ofcombined runs. I started at an end and Dash at the other one. At the middle, we started hitting the other ones targets. Then we made another run. This time we both started at the same end. The targets were placed on our left and right, or up and down. When one hit left, the other hit right, when one hit down, the other hit up. Thus we trained with the bow for the day. Then we did a small sparring match. It was indeed evem this time. When our aems could no longer hold the swords, I said:

"What about a little water?"

"Sounds nice. Let's do it" Dash said with a grin as she jumped in the middle of the lake. I followed her and we stood there, in water, talking about our friends in Canterlot. I was wondering what were they doing. In a couple of days the first week of training will be completed.

"Hey Dash, don't you wonder what our friends are doing in Canterlot right now?" I asked.

"To be honest, I've been wondering since the morning what could they be doing. I mean, look at us. In 3 days we learnt magic, mind fighting, swordmanship, archery, stealth and so much more. And we had Gladir as a guide. Imagine if we had also Celestia and Shining Armor, besides Gladir. We could learn so much more about magic and how to use it" Dash said.

"Maybe we should suggest this tomorrow" I said.

"I...don't know. Maybe we should. Then again, if we were to go to Canterlot, we would be under strict training" Dash added.

"Yeah...We will see. Tomorrow will tell" I said. "Now, what about we get some rest?" I said.

"Not such a bad idea, even if it is quite early" Dash said, getting out of the water. I got out too, and together we flew back home. We got ourselves dry, and in bed. But we weren't really sleepy, so I got out of bed, imagined an electric guitar with an amp, and a set of drums. Then I said:

"Care for a duo?"

"You can bet on that" Dash said, as she got out of bed and tried the drums. "What do you want to play?" she asked me.

I thought for a couple of moments, before I decided to play something sweet, just for Dash.

"Oh, I've got the perfect song. You'll love it. Just follow my lead" I said and started playing. The song on which I decided in the end was one I heard just a couple of days before leaving Earth, and I remebered that I had played it before, when I first started guitar.

We finished the song and Dash said with a warm smile:

"You trickster. You tricked me into singing a song from you to me. Come here." And she took my face in her hooves and gave me a passionate kiss, before we got in bed. Dash put her head on my chest and said:

"I can't wait for you to see what I added to our sanctuary. You will love it."

"I am sure I will" I said with a smile and I fell asleep, wanting to spend another cozy night in the company of my beautiful Rainbow Dash.

**-Somewhere, that night-**

"My lord, we detect that the boy is asleep, but he is protected. We can't break through" one of the goblin magicians said.

"You are useless!" Lord Morbidus said very angry. "How are they protected?"

"We...we don't know. We have never seen something like this. We suspect however, that he learnt the secrets of magic and mind defense" the same goblin said.

"Then break his defense" Lord Morbidus said.

"We have tried, but to no avail. Something else protects the defense" the goblin said.

Lord Morbidus said: "Get out. I don't want to see you until I return!" and he took flight towards an unknown destination. While he was flying, he talked to himself:

"If Celestia doesn't protect them, and their mind defense is protected some other way, there is only a single pony that can help me. I must hurry."

**Leave a review if you enjoyed this chapter. Please send me any spelling mistakes in a PM. The next chapter will be out in a couple of weeks, due to some things I have to deal with first. If, by any chance, I happen to put up a chapter sooner, that just means you are full of luck :D**

**The song refered in this chapter is called "You and I" from Scorpions. I felt like this song will picture the relation between Daniel and Dash the best at the moment.**

**Quote of the day: " You, my friend are going to be distroyed one day by your own ignorance...and by wiskey, and I might not be there to save you again." me to a friend of mine, that got drunk and almost sent a message to his ex-gf. Don't drink guys :D (only with moderation)**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi everyone. Here is the next chapter. I'm sorry this took so long, but as I said, had to go somewhere for a contest...and I blew it. The contest was worse than any other one I have ever been to. And as I said at the begining, I'll try to deliver quality, so there's that. Also, if you are interested to find out when the next chapter will be coming out, I'll post on my profile updates on how the story is going, including the date of the next chapter, starting today. Well, enjoy.**

Chapter 10 : The Cloaked Pony

'I can't believe you actually built this in such little time' I told Dash as I finally saw what she had done. She actually built about 150 meters behind the tree, in the forest, a rock stage. And it had loads of lights, speakers, guitars, drum sets, bass guitars, microphones and who knows what else.

'I though you would like it' she said with a smirk.

'Like it? LIKE IT!? I LOVE IT! And I love you, Dash' I said giving her a bear-hug. She just giggled and we went back to the pine. We sat down, and together we came with new ideas of what to do when we finished this war that didn't even start. We hadn't decided upon anything because there were so many things to do. Our little chat soon had to end, because realise it or not, almost 8 hours passed and we had to get up to our last day of training in the DreamScape. After we finished today, we only had 3 more weeks, according to Shining Armor, until Lord Morbidus and his army attack. In these 3 weeks, we had to take our skills from the DreamScape in the real world and master them. We were already very good at defending our minds and the link, we could hit moving targets with the bow, in any way we imagined and from almost 250 meters, our swordship still needed a little perfecting and our camouflage and stealth were as good as our archery. We, however needed to train with Celestia and her royal guards themselves, so that we could be sure about our skills. And we still had to finish one more training day in the DreamScape.

We woke up and went for breakfast. We ate faster than usual. I assumed we really wanted to finish with the DreamScape. And I also had a feeling that we would soon be needed back at Canterlot. But I had to concetrate on the task at hand, and that was to finish the training. After eating some rushed pancakes and an apple each, we went in the livingroom, and before I concentrated on the horn, I turned to Dash and said:

"You know, I have this stupid feeling, like something is not well in Canterlot."

"Yeah. I have it too. I wonder if it is because of the connection this necklaces have with Celestia. Maybe she is really stressed or something and this feeling gets to us too" Dash said. Actually, I quite forgot about the necklaces. It might as well be what Dash said. But I made a mental note to ask Gladir, since he was practically in Canterlot.

"Okay. Are you ready?" I asked. Dash nodded and I concentrated. One moment we were in the livingroom, next moment we were in the DreamScape. But something was not right. Gladir was there, but he did not look happy. On the contrary, he looked very worried. However, he said:

'Good morning Daniel and Rainbow Dash. I want to tell you both congratulations on what you achieved yesterday, when you two had to fight both me and the other Knights at the same time. Today's training will be done together, and after this, Shining Armor will pick you up and get you two to Canterlot.'

'I am sorry to interrupt you, but what is actually happening? I had this feeling since I woke up today that something was not quite right' I asked.

'You have any idea what might have caused this feeling to appear?' Gladir asked me.

'I suppose it is because of the necklace that me and Dash are wearing and that Celestia wears. She somehow sends us this feeling' I answered to my best of possibility.

'Yes...and no' Gladir said. Both me and Dash looked very confused, but then Gladir explained :

'It is true that the neckalce alows you two and Celestia to speak at great distances, but one thing the neckalce does not allow is changing feelings. As for the feeling of something not being good, this happens when you are a Knight in our ranks and if you are very aware of the magic in Equestria. Now, since you managed to defeat us all yesterday, that, in magic's eyes, make you two the new leaders of the Knights, but since you two had not finished training yet, I am unable to say why the flow of magic in Equestria considers you two as it does. As I said before, no one fully comprehends the ways of the magic. And to answer your question about what is happening, yeasterday night, a guard caught a spy of Lord Morbidus. Since you two managed to trap 13 of the knights at the same time and defend a link, which is suposed to be very fragile, you are now the most powerfull mind crackers, to call you so, from Equestria. However, we have no idea of how powerfull the goblins are so you should still be very carefull. Anyway, you will be taken in Canterlot to finish your training and to get information from this spy. We tried all morning, but his mind seems as defended as yours.'

'A SPY? How could a spy get into Cantelot?' Dash asked.

'We have no idea. He might have used some kind of teleportation spell, but something is not quite normal about this spy. The fact that he is a goblin in pony disguise makes those guys really unpredictable' Gladir said.

'Wait, wait, wait just a second...a goblin in pony disguise?' I asked knowing very well where this was going.

'Yeah, why?' Gladir asked.

'You do realise that if the said goblin was disguised as a pony, at the moment anyone in Equestria might be a spy, and that could be how did Morbidus defeated you all, don't you?' I pointed out.

'That is... actually possible' Gladir said as his eyed widened and he said: ' Wait for me just one second.' And then, poof, he was gone.

'I really can't believe they didn't think about that' I told Dash as we waited for Gladir to return.

'I can't really understand how a goblin might be disguised in a pony' Dash said. However, before I could answer her, Gladir was back and said:

'I am afraid this lesson must be really compressed in one sentence. All you need to do to do the tricks in battle is to use your imagination. Also, from now on keep the horn at your neck, near the neckalce at all times. It is one of the horns of the first dragon that appeared in Equestria. It is very strong when it comes to amplifying magic powers. Now, this lesson we will finish tomorrow, after you talk with Celestia. Go back. Shining Armor is waiting for you.'

We bowed and returned in the livingroom, where Shining Armor was waiting for us. He looked at us and said:

"I am here to-" but I interrupted him and said:

"To take us to Canterlot to break into the mind of the goblin spy that was disguised as a pony." He just looked at me and said:

"So, I suppose you had already been told about this. No wonder, after all Gladir can't hold his mouth very long. Well, let's get going then." His horn went bright, and both me and Dash found ourselves in the center of the Throne room. I just put the horn on the necklace and around my neck. Then I looked to the throne and bowed, along with Dash, to the princess. She looked at us and said:

"Well met, Daniel and Rainbow Dash. As you might already know, we found a goblin spy. You may not know however, that the spy was found in the castle, just outside this room. Now, I am getting all the ponies in Canterlot together in the Ball room, so that you two can enter all their minds and see which one might be a spy of any sorts. We need to keep this place safe. And how have you two been?"

"Greetings princess. We have been very well and we are very well trained thanks to Gladir. However we have one more training day to complete. Your plan is a very good one, but before that, I would like to test all the guards in the palace, including Shining Armor. And, with all do respect, your majesty and princess Luna" I said, hoping not to have offended her.

"I understand. Well then, let me summon my sister and all guards, except the ones guarding the prisoner, which you can check when we get to him" the princess said.

She called for Shining Armor and the whole royal guard was in the room in less than 3 minutes, along with princess Luna. After everyone, including Celestia stood in a row across the wall, I said:

"With all do respect princesses, but I will check first a couple of guards, so that we can have some safety here. Until then, Dash please be a guard."

Dash summoned her sword, Moonlight and stood by the door, as the rest of the ponyes present had their mouth opened. Only Celestia made a little comment:

"I see you two are pretty skilled when it comes to magic."

Me and Dash smiled, and then, I started concentrating, and just before connecting my mind to the first guard, Dash said with her mind:

'I got your back.'

I smiled and then made the connection. His mind was completely different from Dash's. I saw his face contorting a little, so I said:

"Don't fight it. Let it flow."

He looked at me a little scared and relaxed. It was quite easy to read his mind to say so, since he almost did the same thing every day. I finished with him and said:

"Go join Rainbow Dash by the door and stand guard." He nodded and went. I went to the next one, and did the same. He was clean too. He went by the door. Then I said:

"Okay, so now that we have a couple of guards and Dash over there, all should be fine." I went to Celestia and said:

"Please relax Princess." She nodded and I went in her mind. It was completely different from the onther ones. It was well organised and very clean. I only had to view a couple of things to be sure it was Celestia, however, I did see something rather interesting. It was a page of a very old book. The title was "Healing spells". I made a mental note to ask Celestia and she knew it, because she said:

'We will talk tomorrow about it.'

Then I went to Luna. I checked her mind very well, because I knew she had already been evil at some point, but now she had no intention to be evil. Shining Armor was next. He was very worried about his sister and was very proud and well disciplined. Yeah, it was indeed him. The rest of the guards were next. They were only a couple dozens of the important ones, so it went fast. After I finished, I said:

"No one in here is a spy. Shining Armor, if you please could have all the rest of the guards in the Ball room so I can examine them. And Princess, I am rather worried about the prisoner. We should pay him a visit and I'll check the guards there."

"Then, we shall go" Celestia said and showed me and Dash the way to the dungeons. The dungeons were just under ground level. There were 4 guards there, not two. Celestia looked confused and asked:

"What is going on?"

"Nothing Princess. We just came here to chagee the watch" one of the guards said.

"Hold it for a second. I need to check all four of you so that we can be sure no other spyes are in the castle" I said.

They looked at Celestia who nodded and they lined up. I said one last thing before checking all of them at once: "Relax." They all did and all went smooth. Then they changed the watch and we enetered the cell of the prisoner. The goblin was not very tall, had big green ears, and a very long nose. He looked at us with pride and said:

"I'm not telling you shit. If you want information, then you will have to get it by force."

"Don't worry. We will" I said with an evil and sadistic grin, trying to scare him into saying something. He just smirked and said:

"There is no human that can break the mind of a goblin."

"We will see" I said as I closed my eyes. Through our mental link, I told Dash a plan to get past his mental barrier. We knew very well that if he was desperate, he might try to attack us while we attack him, so I put a little trap in place. If he attacks, he will attack his own mind and give us acces at the same time, but he will only realise it when we are done. Then me and Dash begun focusing and we felt the wall around his mind. It was quite well defended. We tried forcing it open. It didn't work. We tried going under or over it but to no avail. Then we tried creating a small hole, while one of us was keeping him busy. We didn't have any luck. Than Dash says:

' Why don't we trick him into falling in our trap? We could just make it seem like we got through and he will try to attack and fall into the trap.'

'That might just work' I said. Using a little bit of magic, I created the image of a tiny hole in the wall. The moment the hole was complete, I felt something trying to go through our defense. And he saw the opening. He stepped right into the trap. The attack went right through his defense and we saw everything. Then I gave him a second to look around what had he done and then we retreated in our minds.

We opened our eyes, and we saw the goblins eyes tremble in fear, as he asked:

"What are you?! How the hell did you do this to me?! How did you break through?! I am a goblin. I am invincible."

"This is where you are wrong. Everyone has a weakness. And to answer your question, you did it yourself" I said as the three of us left the cell. The last thing I saw was his scared face when he looked at me.

We went back to the throne room. Celestia asked a guard about the situation with the ponies in Canterlot, and then called Shining Armour. It looked like in a couple of minutes all the ponies would be in the Ball room for us to inspect. Just then Shining Armor entered the door and asked:

"What is going on?"

"Daniel managed to break the mind of the spy and fond out some things. As my Captain, you are bound to know every piece of military information" Celestia said.

"Okay, so Shining Armor, how big can the pony army be?" I asked.

"Around 40,000 ?" he said.

"Damn it. That is not enough. Not nearly good enough" I said. " The enemy has an army of 80,000 creatures they call Ethers. They are pure evil creatures summoned by their leader, Lord Morbidus. And are very organised. They have about 1,000 assassins too, so we must be really careful. Also, they plan to attack soon" I continued.

"Soon? How soon?" asked Celestia.

"In a forthnight. That is almost a week sooner. We need to prepare the army faster and we need more soldiers. Princess, I'll be needing to visit Gladir's room and I want you and Shining Armor to be present. But after we check on the Ball room. He had no other information regarding spyes in Canterlot" I finished.

"A week earlier? I have to spread this news. The ponies need to be ready. While you check on the ball room, I'll be calling all available ponies for an intensive training. Princess, Daniel, Rainbow Dash" Shining Armor said as he excused himself and went to prepare our army. We still had a couple of weeks, but damn, the Ether army was fast. And big. And I was scared. I felt Dash was scared too, plus her wings were shaking.

"Follow me" Celestia said as we went towards the Ball room. We pushed the doors and everyone started clapping at me and Dash. They probably remebered my song and Dash's dance. Celestia silenced them and had all doors closed and then said:

"Ponies of Canterlot, as you know, we are on the point of war with the Evil. However, we had the first victory today, when we managed to get information from a spy we caught in Canterlot."

The whole croud gasped and began talking among themself.

"Please be silent. You are all here so that we can find out if there are any more spyes in Canterlot. Daniel here will be checking everyone inside here. As Daniel would say, relax and we will be done in a moment. Daniel, if you are ready..."

"Of course Princess. I have one last thing to say before. Guards, any pony I point at, must be seized imediatelly. And ponies, don't worry, it won't hurt a bit, and the only way I would point you out is if you are spyes. However, I offer the chance to the spyes that might be here to turn themselves in and cooperate. Just raise your hoof."

No one moved.

"I didn't expect anyone to do it, but I had to say it" I explained to Celestia.

"I understand. Please proceed" Celestia said.

"Understood. Dash, I'll be needing your help. We are going to check the whole room at once."

Dash nodded and we both concentrated on the horn. Gladir said:

'You'll be needing help with that. We will be giving you a hand.'

We felt our minds being rushed with thoughts and emotions of different ponies. It took us a couple of minutes to check everyone. When we were done, I said:

"All seems to be fine. There are no other-"

But then I saw a screen of smoke in the room and a cloaked pony appeared. The cloak looked old and worn. The pony raised his hoof towards me and said in a powerful voice:

"Beware, beware, young Knight of Truth,

Be careful where you place your foot.

The war ahead is not a joke,

The ponies will have to cope.

The path ahead is full of pain,

The more you fight, the more you'll gain.

At some point, all might seem lost,

Don't lose your faith or go to dust.

Go to the Mountain of a Thousand Sorrows,

There you will find the new tomorrow.

Just remeber what I say,

When the mount you reach, do speak your name."

Then he dissapeared from inside the cloak, as the cloak fell to the ground. All of us were shocked. But the most shocked was me. How in the heavens did that cloaked pony know where to find me? And how could he enter here? This place was supposed to be protected against teleportation spells, only a hand of ponies being allowed to do it.

"Ponies of Canterlot. Don't panic. You are all free to return to your homes. Guards of Canterlot, please patrol the roads and entry points at all times. No one comes in or goes out without my, Daniel's or Rainbow Dash's permission. Have a good day and some guard find Shining Armor and send him to the throne room" Celestia said as we all walked back to the throne room. Shining Armor was already there.

"You called, Princess?"

"Yes. It is time we visit Gladir. We need to win this war" Celestia said. Then she started towards the room of the Knights of the Light. The blood-red wall melted before our eyes, and then sealed us inside. The horns glew and the ghosts appeared.

"What is the emergency?" Gladir asked.

"Gladir, we just found out new things regarding the upcoming battle" I said, and I told him everything, including about the strange pony. He was quiet for a long time.

"And I have a fair idea what to do. We could use magic to create an army. Like creating a soldier and then replicating him" I said.

"A very interesting and full of risks idea. How are you going to do it?" Gladir asked.

"I was hoping you could tell me" I said.

"I am sorry, but there is no such spell, or at least I don't know of it. You will have to look through the books in Celestia's hidden library. As for the strange pony, I haven't heard about a pony wizard in a long time. He is no ordinary pony. Use his advice well. If he could get past the protection here, it is possible he had a very good reason to. Now, I expect you two to be ready for the training tomorrow. And great work with breaking the mind of the goblin" Gladir said, as his form faded.

"Tomorrow, after training come to the throne room, both of you" Celestia told me and Dash. " Now get some sleep. You did well for today" she added.

We headed towards the room we had before when we were visiting Canterlot, and we went to bed. We were smashed with amount of magic used that day took its toll. We met however under the pine and relaxed together, as we talked about the days events and about how strange the cloaked pony was.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter :D. Leave a review if you did. I always appreciate support. If I made any mistakes in terms of spelling, my Inbox is opened for you to tell me.**

**The song refered in this chapter is "The Wizard" by Blind Guardian.**

**The quote of the day : "This was certainly the funniest question a kid could ask on a paper that would be sent to the teacher to review : Where is the bathroom?". This is what out teacher at the contest told us as we( me and my friends) finished our test and were waiting for the result. Too bad none of us took anything considerable :))))))**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hi everyone. I know that lately the time between a chapter and the next one have been bigger than before. However, this is because I have a lot to do lately at school. And also because I started working on something else and, as usual I deliver quality not quantity( unless it is possible both). Instead, I decided that this chapter would be a little bigger (over 5k) and also in this chapter there will be some lemonade :D ( the simbol is this -XxX-). Please enjoy :D**

Chapter 11 : Knights of the Light

The morning came sooner that we wanted to. By this time, our mind link became a part of us, so we felt refreshed. However, not everything was pink and fluffy. On the nightstand near the queen sized bed in which me and Dash slept was a note. By the way it was written, it was from Celestia. It said that we should drop by in the throne room, before going for training. I was ready to start the day, but it seemed like Dash had some other ideas. She said:

"Do we really have to get up so early today? I mean, it is just 7 and a half in the morning. We could spend some more time together and call it a late morning."

"Well, we could do that...it would be quite okay...I think" I said.

"It is decided then" she said grinning. "Now...how do you feel about a shower before getting in the throne room?"

"Well, I guess we could be having a shower...but, just to be sure...a relaxing one or an enjoyable and relaxing one?" I asked a little suspicious.

Her grin was still on her face and she had a twinkle in her eyes that could only mean trouble and fun when she said:

"I don't know...let's let fate decide. What do you say?"

"Fine by me" I answered grinning. Yep. It was going to be one heck of a shower.

**-XxX-**

I smiled at Dash and got out of bed. Before she could follow me to the bathroom, I added:

"Just give me a second to prepare the water."

She nodded. I went inside, got the water nice and warm and looked around for something to block the window of the shower if, by amy chance a guard or someone else would come in. Being in a castke with about 3 unicorns and 2 alicorns that can teleport anywhere is a little dangerous...though I suspect none of them would have the rudeness to come here unanounced. I couldn't find anything so I let the steam cover the glass quite well before saying:

"Okay. Shower's ready."

Dash came in and said:

"That sure took a while. But at least it is nice and warm. And intimate" she added in the end seeing the steam covered glass. I smiled and she enteres the shower with me. As I said before, this shower was quite big, so we had plenty of space. We just decided to sit down on the now warm floor, under the water and talk. Some minutes passed, when Dash came closer to me and said:

"Man, I never thought I would find wetting my feathers as enjoying as this." I smiled and she gave me a kiss. A big and passionate kiss. Our lips moved and never wanted to stop. Even through our mind link, we could feel the intense love fore one another. Then I felt Dash's tongue requesting access to mine. I slightly opened my mouth and out tongues started an unusual dance on a rithm I was humming, which made Dash giggle. Through the mental link she said:

'You never cease to surprise me.'

At hearing that, I begun kissing with more passion. We kept at this for a while, before Dash stopped for some air and then she begun massaging me, while she smiled. She said:

"I don't remeber you being so full of muscles."

I knew she was ironic and wanted to mess with me, so I said:

"Well...last time you checked, you didn't really pay attention to them."

She just gasped and said with a grin:

"Ohh...so I didn't pay attention? Well, this time all my attention will be here and now" and she stooped the massage, while she turned her back to me. "But before that, my wings are kind of soar...so if you please" she added. I smiled and massaged her. She suddenly turned around, gave me a quick kiss and then turned to face my crotch. "You missed a spot" she said. I just smiled and said:

"Well, let me take care of that."

And so, I moved my face closer to her marehood and tasted it. She yelped, before giggleling and said:

"Still full of surprises" and she put her nose closer to my crotch. I could feel her warm breath on it, along with the warm water. The feeling was amazing. And then I felt something closing over my crotch, as the warm walls of Dash's mouth came in contact with it. I almost yelped, but instead I moaned. The vibrations were enough to make Dasm moan too. The feeling of her mouth around my crotch, along with the moans was maddening. She then begun moving her head up and down, while every now and again she would create a vacuum in her mouth. Meanwhile, through our mental link, the show was coming close to the grand finalé. Dash increased her pace a little and also the power of the vaccum, along with the distance my crotch reached inside the cave. This made me moan loud. I think she guessed what was happening, because the next thing I knew, she stopped moving her head. My crotch reached as far down as it could, and the vaccum was there as well. And then it happened. The fuse reached its limits, and the fireworks started. We didn't miss anything. Again, we enjoyed it together and succumbed to the power of our love.

**-XxX-**

This shower sure was enjoyable. Ten minutes later, after we were both clean, we returned in our room to get ready for the day. We found breakfast on the nightstand. I just looked around for anyone, before I saw another note:

"I teleported this food to you two, since I have no guards available to do this at the moment. Meet me in the throne room in half an hour. Celestia."

"Man, I thouht for a second someone came in here while we were showering" I said.

"That would have been quite hard to explain...I guess" Dash said with a smile. "However, I do not remeber to have opened this window " she added.

I turned to her and she was laughing again. "Got ya!", she said. I begun laughing as well. We then started eating the perfectly cooked pancakes and salad, along with a wonderful orage juice. Ten minutes later, we were on our way to the throne room, feeling refreshed and full of energy. We aproached the door, the guards bowed and let us pass. Inside, on the throne, Celestia was waiting for us. We came before her and bowed. She smiled and said:

"Good morning to you two. I hope you enjoyed the breakfast."

"Indeed we did. However, if I am not too pushy, may I ask why are we here?" I said.

"You and Dash are here because I wanted to talk to you about what you saw in my mind. Please listen carefully. The page you saw was a page of one of my books. It is an old book, that I bought from a pony magician a long time ago. The magician might be long dead, but from him I have learned a lot. As for the page, you could see that it had a title called healing spells. Actually, the book has a lot of information on magic, from basics to complex. Which brings us to the point of this meeting. I have talked with Gladir and he allowed me to teach you the spells in that book after the training today. But for this to be possible, I will have to witness your training today. Now, we should start" Celestia said as she made 3 pillows appear and placed them in the center of the floor. Thrn she called:

"Guards, don't let anyone inside until I say different. Daniel, Rainbow Dash, if you please..."

I sat down, and so did Dash and Celestia. I took the horn from around the neck and placed it in front of me, while concentrating on it. Dash and Celestia concentrated too, and we were instantly transported in the DreamScape, where Gladir was waiting for us. He smiled and said:

'Good morning. Celestia, what a pleasure. I believe you will be very impressed with their progress so far. Daniel, Rainbow Dash, let us begin.'

Gladir summoned Excalibur, made a copy of himself and then annoinced:

'En garde!'

Both me and Dash took guard positions and expected his clones to attack. They attacked at the same time, only their movements were different, so they weren't copying each other, which made the things a little more chalenging. However, I sidestepped the first attack, while Dash blocked it. Then we attacked. I made a diagonal slash from bottom-left to top-right, but Gladir blocked it. His sword glew with magic, which could only mean he increased his defensive power to block that slash. Hoever, Dash's attack on the other Gladir was a little more planned. She increased her speed using magic, and made a fake hit towards his leg, before delivering what could have very well been a deadly blow at the level of the left shoulder. That Gladir increased his speed too, and parryed the hit. I told Dash:

'Try to stall them both, while I make a surprise attack.' She just looked at me with a grin. She suddenly flew up and summoned her bow, with which fired a barage of arrows, aiming to distract the two Gladirs. When the two saw what was coming for them, created a magical barrier around them, so that all teh arrows missed. While she did that, I flew too, and, it the middle of the flight, I disappeared. My camouflage was perfect, and thanks to my magically increased speed, I managed to sweep down and hit both Gladirs and disarm them. Just then, they smiled. Both me and Dash were on the ground now, when we felt a pressure on our mind. It was like anything we felt before. Moch more stronger and overwhelming. However, our plan was already in motion. I created that small opening for the attacker to enter the trap. While they were going right in, I heard Celestia's voice:

'I wonder how they defeated that goblin if their minds are so weak.' Then I heard Gladir's voice:

'Look around you.'

Around them was an empty space. Then, it all lit up like a screen. I said:

'Princess and Gladir, thank you for falling in my trap. Now, if you don't mind, I will be checking your minds a little.'

'Impossible. How did they get through my defense. I have been training for years and they got through so easy. That is literally impossible' Celestia said.

I released both of them, and when the mind game was over, Gladir started to explain:

'Actually Celestia, it was quite easy. You see, when one attacks to capture a mind, he actually has to make a small opening in his mind defense so that he can actually reach that mind. What Daniel and Dash invented is actually a fake target. It was a seled part in their mind that resembeled an exact mind. Both of us believed it and we went in, leaving a small opening in our defense, which they got through and inspected our minds.'

'But to come up with such strategy...this is briliant' Celestia said turning towards us. 'And the fact that you mastered all the other bits of magic in such little time...this could only mean that the prophecy is true' she went on. 'Daniel, Rainbow Dash, I am very impressed. We shall have a special meeting with every pony in Canterot to award you two the title of Knight of Light and Truth' she continued with a smile. 'Thank you for teaching them, Gladir. You have done an excelent job.'

'In fact, they taught me quite a few tricks. They are really inovative, when it comes to finding solutions for a problem' Gladir said with a wide smile.

'Very well then. I declare your training with Gladir as complete. From now on, however, you two will be under my guidance for some delicate spells that you will find rather interesting. And Gladir, please be present tonight to the celebration. And the other knights as well. It is time to return' Celestia said.

We opened our eyes, and we were back in the throne room.

'Guards, now the throne room can be entered into. Please carry on' Celestia said loud, while I put the horn around my neck again. Then she turned to us and said:

"Now, since it is almost lunch, I think you two can go to lunch with Twilight and your friends. Please return here as soon as you are done."

Me and Dash bowed and started towards th kitchen. A guard acompanyed us and left once we were in front of the kitchen door. I opened the door, and inside were our six friends talikng: Twilight, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Apple Jack and Spike. They stopped talking the moment we opened the door. I only heard Pinkie scream something like "OMG here they are. Get them" and in the next second, we were tackled on the ground by all six of them. I noticed since the last time I saw them, they were a little more powerfull and I could barely keep myself on my feet, while Dash was already on the ground. We all laughed and they gave us a moment to dust ourselves off, before Twilight asked:

"How have you two been? We really missed you here!"

"We have been fine. We really enjoyed our training to say so and got to know each other a little more" Dash said.

"What kind of training had you two been through? We only learned how to use some weapons, how to be sneaky and, besides that, we trained physically" Twilight continued. Before Dash could answer however, I said:

"I am sorry Twlight, but we can't really tell you much. But we can tell you this much: we can now use magic and are the best mind crackers that Equestria ever had."

"Wow. That is awesome" Twilight said, while I heard Spike grumble something like "Very humble". I looked at him and smiled. "Anyway" TWilight continued, " please tell us more of what is going on. We don't really know much. They keep us in darkness, to say so."

"I don't know if I am the right person to tell you all of this, but I suppose since Celestia doesn't find out...the fact is we are in big shit to say so. Our army is, at the maximum, half of their and they are going to attack a week sooner" I said, looking very serious at all of them. Then I saw something I thought I would never see at them. Seriousness. Even Pinkie was not laughing or making stupid statements. This really baffeled me. They actually taught Pinkie to hold her mouth. The Twilight said:

"I see...so that is why all this fuss is about. And have you two, Celestia, Luna and Shining Armor decided on something to do?"

"Well, not really. Besides having our army trained faster and try to have as less loses as possible, I can't see what can we do right now. I had an idea yesterday, that involved making an army using magic, like manipulating some dolls or something like that to confuse them, but Gladir said he never heard of such a spell, and that in theory it might be possible, but the power necessary would be gigantic. I really don't know what could we do" I answered.

"We don't really have much of a choice..." Twilight concluded and everyone was silent for a moment.

"Hey, let's cheer up a little. Daniel, can you two show us some of the stuff you learned. As Twilight said earlier, we only learned some basic stuff and a little mind defense. Not very much if you think at the amount of time spent here" Rarity said.

'Dash...I think we could tell them some things to keep them safe. What do you say?' I asked mentally.

'I think you are quite right. Plus they would see them anyway on the battlefield' Dash said.

"Well, let me give you some advice for the mind defense first. I don't know how you guys imagine it, but I see it as a wall, so my advice is that you make it reflect any attacks instead of absorbing them. As for what we learnt...Dash, please show them" I said.

Dash nodded with a grin and became invisible right before their eyes. She soundlessly moved behind Fluttershy and said:

"Camouflage is really usefull on a battlefield." Fluttershy jumped a little, but was not as scared as we thought. In fact, she said:

"Really impresive, Rainbow Dash. What else can you two do?"

"Well, we could show you our swords" Dash said. She summoned Moonlight and I summoned Silverfang. Both swords were glowing and AJ with the others gasped a little. Rarity, however, was wide-eyed. She only said one word: shiny. Everyone laughed and Twilight said:

"Nice. And I suppose the swords are kind of magical by the way they shine. What are they called?"

"Well, since you asked...mine is called Silverfang and Dash's called Moonlight" I said.

"Quite fitting. Well, now that we caught up with each other, let's eat" Spike added.

We ate some quick lunch because we all had some more training to do. Before me and Dash left, I said:

"Hope you all can come to the celebration tonight. You all will have fun."

"We will be there" Twilight said. And then we all left towards training. Me and Dash went back towards the throne room. When we got there, the guards opened the doors and we went inside. Celestia was reading something and when we came, she said:

"I hope that the meeting with your friends went well. You did inform them about what we are planning to do, right?"

"We did" I said.

"Good. Because all of you will have a major role in our strategy. You will compose our Special Team, to say so. You will be among the ponies on the battlefield, fighting and helping where you can. After we see how the initial abttle goes, you eight might get some more difficult tasks. Before we go on with your training, I hope you won't mind. I called the Jammers to play tonight at the celebration" Celestia said.

"Great. I can't wait to see Chordan, Bumper and Joshua" I said.

"I am glad you like who will come to play. I'll make sure to get them here a little sooner so that you can talk a little before the celebration. Now, regarding your training, follow me" Celestia said. She made her horm glow and the thone moved. Under it it was a stair that went down. We followed her through the tunnel and found ourselves in a big room full of books. Celestia went to a shelf and took a strange book, that seemed to glow in a purple light. She put it on a table and said, while she looked for the right page:

"This is the book you saw. It is the book I bought from a wizard pony when I was younger. It is full of many interesting spells, but there are only 5 or so that you might find usefull for what is ahead of us. Please come here and take a look."

We came closer to the book and saw the same page I saw when searching Celestia's mind. There were indeed 5 spells on that page, one beying the barrier Gladir used. The other four were the Teleportation spell, a healing spell for light wounds, another healing spell for deeper wounds and a spell for canceling another spell. I concentrated and tried the barrier one. It was not as easy as I thought. Only after a couple of seconds I could feel a bubble around me that was flashing in and out of existence. Dash tried it too, but her bubble only was there for a second, before going out.

"As you can see, this spells require a little more control of magic and concentration, but the method used for them resembles the one you two use for camouflage. Now, regarding the barrier, you will only master it when it appears in an instant over the target you think about, because this barrier can protect anyone you think about, only you have to also see him or her. As for the healing spells, I really recommend you two not to try them until you mastered the barrier. After that, I'll show you two the proper way of doing them. Teleportation, however, is quite easy. All you have to do is imagine the place you want to go. As for the spell against spells, this is the trickiest. You can't do it, unless you know exactly against what spell you want to apply it, else it won't work and will only consme a lot of energy. However, if you want to look at other spells inside here, please do, but, this are the only ones I found quite interesting" Celestia explained.

I opened the book at the first page and saw a lot of pictures of what looked like a runic alphabet. I decided to learn that inmy spare time, since it wasn't that important. The next pages contained spels for manipulating the 4 elements: air, water, earth and fire and the combinations of them. After that, came the chapter regarding life essence, where the healing spells were. However, a page wa thorn right at the end of the chapter.

"Who torn this page?" Dash asked.

"This is how I received the book. I asked about it too, but the pony from whom I have this book said that the spells on that page were to big of a deal to give them to anyone" Celestia said. This thing made me think. Since this chapter was on life essence and it was at the end of the chapter, it could only mean one thing: this spells had connection with controlling the life essence of others and maybe steal it and give it to some other pony, or to speak more clearly, ressurect ponyes and prolongue the life of the user. If that were the case, this page was really a big deal.

"Princess, I have a theory regarding that page" I said.

"I know what you are thinking. I am sure that it is exactly that. NOw, did you find anything interesting?" Celestia asked.

"As a matter of fact, the spells for controlling weather might be usefull, but anything else than that, no. ALso, may I ask you to lend me a book on this runic alphabet here?" I asked.

"Sure thing. And, if you don't mind me asking, how exactly can we use the weather spells?" Celestia asked.

"We can create some storms at the borders of Equestria to slow the enemy movements, we can use the fog to hide our numbers, and so on" I said.

"That might actually not be a bad idea. Here is the book on the runic alphabet, but if you don't mind me asking, why the interest?" Celestia said.

"Because, if time comes and I really need to go to the cloaked pony, I might need to learn this language. Plus, I find it rather interesting" I said.

"Princess, may I ask what is this over here?" Dash asked. She was looking through the book, when she found something rather odd. On the corner of one page it was written darkness in capital letters.

"I sincerely have no idea. I haven't seen it before. It might be something regarding the book or the previous owner" Celestia said."Anyway, we should go now, it is almost time for the celebration. And the Jammers should be here by now" Celestia continued. With the book under my arm, me and Dash went back up the stairs and into our room. I left the book on the night table and went into the ball room, while Dash was trying to decide what to wear that night.

In the ball room, I found none other than the Jammers. When they saw me, they greeted me, and Chordan said:

"How are you? I heard the celebration tonight is for you and that marefriend of yours, Rainbow Dash."

"I am fine, and indeed it is. We are beying invested as Knights of the Light" I said. ALl of them went wide-eyed, while Joshua asked:

"So they really exist? Man, this is awesome."

"Yeah they exist, only I am the newest one in about a thousand years. Anyway, what are you going to play tonight?" I said.

"Well, we have no idea. What about you give us an idea, and maybe you will play along us" Bumper said with a smile.

"I have an idea. Listen to this" I said as I took a guitar and showed them the song.

-10 minutes later-

"And that is what we are going to do. What do you say?" I asked.

"Sounds awesome to me. Guys?" Chordan said.

"Hell yeah!" both Bumper and Joshua cheered.

"Okay, I'll be back in half an hour for the celebration. Remember to wait for my signal" I said.

"You bet" the Jammers said in unison.

I said bye a returned to my room. Dash was still there undecided. I looked at her and laughed:

"What are you staring at? And why are you lughing?" Dash said a little unamused.

"You" I said. Her face was rather hard to descipher, but she was really mad.

"And why is that, I might ask?" Dash said.

"Because you can't decide what to wear when you are so beautiful just he way you are" I said with a grin on my face. Her face lightened and she begun laughing too. "So, you will come as every other pony, or should we summon some kind of armor for us to become knights?" I asked.

"You know what, that is not a bad idea. But more like an uniform than an armor. Now, how did the meeting with the Jammers go?"

"Agreed. It went rather well and we have a surprise for the entire Canterlot. Now, let's decide on the uniform" I said.

We agreed on a pair of black pants and a white T-shirt. And right on time, because we should have been in tha ball room in a couple of minutes. We went to the door of the ball room, and a guard said:

"Good luck and have fun." We thanked him and he opened the door. Inside, a yellow carpet was in the canter of the ball room and all the ponies in Canterlot were on either side of this carpet. We walked along it, while ponies with happy faces looked at us and smiled. At the very front were our friends, along with Shining Armor and Big Mac. Where the carpet ended, were Celestia and Luna, along with Gladir. Behind him were the other knights. We walked until we were before Celestia and Luna and Celestia said in a solemn voice:

"Ponies of Canterlot and Equestria, we are here today to invest this two brave warriors to the rank of Knight of Truth. Daniel, Rainbow Dash, please summon your swords."

I summoned ilverfang and gave him to Celestia, while Dash summoned Moonlight and gae it to Luna. Then, while Celestia and Luna were holding the bades, Gladir said:

"Please put you hand or hoof on the blade and repeat after me: Today, starting from this moment, I here by swear the starting from now I will defend all that is good in this world, along with the ponies and people close to me." Both me and Dash repeated after him and when we finished, Gladir said:

"Please kneel." We kneeled and Celestia and Luna placed the swords on our left shoulder, then moved them to the right and rested them on our head, while Gladir said: "By the power with which I was invested and by the power of magic, I now declare the both of you Knights of the Light. Rise and become our shield against the evil." And rose we did in the applauses of the entire ball room. I put my hands in the air and said:

"My pony friends please listen. Today might be the last day in which we part before this damned war starts. I know most of the ponies inside here are in the pony army, and I think this is the time to tell everyone that me and Rainbow Dash over here will do anything to protect our friends that are also our famillies, which means every pony in Equestria, as shoudl all of you. But now is not the time to think about all of this, because tonight we are going to take the roof over this castle. Please welcome The Jammers. Hit it boys."

The swords dissapeared, I made my wings appear, flew to the stage and begun playing with them. All the ponies in the ball room cheered and clapped, including Celestia, Big Mac, Shining Armor, Luna and our friends. We played the song perfectly, and when we reached the end, I looked across the room. In a corner, behind a guard, I sau the cloaked pony, He looked me dead in the eyes, smiled a friendly grin, nodded and was gone. I decided not to tell anyone from the room so that I don't ruin the party, but I knew at least another one saw the pony, because Dash said:

'That was the sam pony from that day. He looked happy for us.'

'Indeed he did. Want to have a drink?' I asked.

'Sure. Meet me at the bar' Dash responded.

I went at the bar, drank some wine with Dash, danced for a while, when Celestia announced:

"I want to congratulate my friends Daniel and Rainbow Dash and to wish then only luck and good time in everything they do. And now, I am sorry to say yhis, But as everything good, this celebration reached an end. Everyone here had training tomorrow, so please have a very good night. Thank you." And Celestia left, but not before coming to us and saying:

"I expect you two in the throne room, tomorrow morning to discuss some strategies and to show you two how you can practice the spells I gave you. HAve a good night."

We wished Celestia a good night too and then at every pony in the ball room, as we left for our room. We were a little tipsy because of the drinks we had, so we went straight to bed. However, drinks had no effect in our minds, so we met under our pine and discussed about the cloaked pony again, and what did he want today that he came here.

**Hope you liked and enjoyed this chapter. As usual, if you did, a review is highly appreciated. Also, any mistakes regarding spelling and such can be sent to me in a PM.**

**The song refered in this chapter is "Riders of the Storm" by Hammerfall.**

**Quote of the day: "Yet another chapter that does not tell us who the leg is" (me after reading Naruto manga chapter no. 666).**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Here is the next chapter of this story. This chapter will probably be the last filler in this story. So, please enjoy :D**

# Chapter 12 : Hearts on fire #  
>The morning came, and with it the beginning of a new day of training. Today we were about to have quite a busy day. I woke up first, to find Dash still sleeping in my arms. Her face was so peacefull and happy. I really wondered for a second if I should marry her. Don't get me wrong, if I were back in my world, maybe things would have gone different and I would have had a human girlfriend, but the thing is I was indeed happy here in Equestria. I was someone here, I had friends and I had Dash. So maybe, just maybe, I should marry her. I mean what can go wrong?<p>

My thoughts were suddenly interupted by flashes of the battlefield. It was a very frightening view. An army of ponies, versus what looked like an army of monsters. THey were twice as many as the pony army. They sent forth a small messenger to ask the pony army to surrender. The pony army denied it. The messenger turned back and the monsters began the attack. THen all was black. Another image played in front of my eyes: someone with a big sword standing over someone else, ready to strike. The person that was on the ground had a helmet on his head, but I could still see a tear fall out of his eye. Then all black again. There was a final image of tall mountain-like building falling. Then I returned back in the bedroom, to Dash that just opened her eyes. She was looking at me with worry and I asked:

"What?"

"I asked you about 3 times if you are okay, but you seemed to be spaced out. What happened?" Dash explained.

"I...I don't know. I think I had a vision or something. It was the war we were about to have" I said.

"How do you know?"Dash asked.

"I saw a pony army and the army we saw in that goblins memory. And I saw more things that were really bad. BUt I didn't see you or me anywhere" I said.

"That's odd. If it was indeed a vision, then we should have been somewhere on the battlefield" Dash said.

"Anyway, please don't mention anything to Celestia or anybody else. If what I saw is true, then we are indeed in a big problem" I said.

"But, if it's so important, why not tell Celestia?" Dash asked confused.

"We will tell her, only not now. Think what panick would Equestria be in, if the rumor got out. It would be chaos. I'll tell her the night before the assault, but when we will think about strategy, all sugestions we make, will be taking into consideration this vision" I explained. Dash took a second to think it over before nodding. Then she said:

"Looks like this time we have to go to the kitchen for the food. I wonder why would Celestia teleport the food yesterday."

"Well...I think it is better we don't ask, taking into consideration that we..." I said, trailing off.

"Yeah. We better keep our tongues. So, we go for breakfast, or we call it a late morning?" Dash asked, her playfull smile back on her face.

"As much as I would love a late morning every morning, we have a lot to do so that we win this war. So, let's get something to eat and then see what does Celestia suggest when it comes to learning the spells we saw yesterday. Plus I would like to look a little in that rune language if I have time. It might come usefull one day. But, once we are done with this war, I'll spend as much time as I can with you, and we will call it a late morning every morning" I said, giving her a kiss.

After we broke the kiss, Dash said with a smile:

"I'll hold you to that. Now let's eat. I'm starving."

We got up and I was still in the uniform from last night. We began walking along the hallway, when I asked Dash:

"Do you have any idea how our battle armor should look like? And how should we name the pony army?"

"I don't know, but why are this things important?" Dash asked again.

"Well, these litle things boost the moral of the pony soldiers" I explained.

"What?" Dash asked even more confused.

"These things make soldiers think that they belong there and that they should not leave in the middle of the battle because their friends will probably die. As for the armor, it is a symbol. It will make the army become more united and more focused. When they see that symbol they know that they can defeat anything" I explained with a smile.

"You know you would make a great public talker" Dash said.

"Not really. Afraid of crowds" I said.

"Well, you don't look afraid of crowds when you play guitar" Dash said in her usual funny tone.

"That is something else. That is for fun, but when it comes to serious things, I am more afraid of crowds then this war" I said.

"If you say so. Now, I have an idea. Since we will be most likely to rule this army, why don't we make the said flag of the army something that represents all of us. Like a big grey shield with a cyan wing and a blue dragon wing intersected and with two unicorn horns in the center. The shield would represent Shining Armor, the wings would be us and the two horns would be Celestia and Luna" Dash said, her face suddenly becoming very excited.

"That might actually work. It sounds so damn awesome. We should tell Celestia when we go to training" I said thinking about the idea and liking it.

We reached the kitchen and we were alone there too. It would seem we were late to the breakfast. We ate some stew we found on the table and we left for the throne room. On the way, I was still thinking about the armor, when a guard stopped me and Dash and said:

"Sir Daniel?"

"Yes. That is me" I said jokingly.

"The princess has requested your presence in the dungeon. Please follow me" the guard said. As we were walking, Dash asked to guard.

"What happened? Why is princess Celestia in the dungeon?"

"I am not allowed to talk about this, but it is something about the spy" the guard said.

"Then take us there pronto. It is dangerous for the princess to be there by herself" I said.

"Don't worry sir, there are at least four other guards with her" the pony said.

"You don't understand. I am talking about mental protection. We need to hurry" I said again. The pony turned around with a pale face and begun running. We followed him and got there in the dungeon. Celestia and the guards were down on the floor, while the prisoner was laughing like mad. I quickly concentrated, entered his unfocused mind and made them release Celestia and the other guards. After this, as the goblin felt my presence, his laugh stopped in his throat as he hissed:

"No. Not you again. What do you want?" I ingored him and went to Celestia and said:

"Princess, are you okay?"

"Yes I am. Thank you. I didn't think he was so powerfull. We need more information from them. A scout reported last night that the enemy began their movement slowly but steadily towards Equestria. We need to know about troop moves and enemy strategy" Celestia said.

"Understood" I said as I turned towards the goblin. "Well, you heard her. Speak up or I swear I am going to torture you" I said in an angry tone. All the guards and Dash were frozen at my words. The goblin looked at me with fear in his eyes and said:

"But that is impossible. The army shouldn't have started advancing until next week."

"So you are saying they are going to attack even sooner?" I asked.

"That must be the case. The army will take about five days to get to Equestria. As for troops movements and strategy, I don't know. Only the Lord knows."

"Well, at least you won't get tortured. And please stop doing that to the ponies in here, or I swear I'll starve you to death. But this time, you are excused, because you talked" I said. Then I turned to the guards and said: "Please watch him 24/7. If anything at all happens, tell me or Rainbow Dash and we will deal with it. It doesn't matter when." The guards nodded. I turned then to Celestia and said:

"Your majesty, I suggest we evacuate the civilians at the border of Equestria. Also, we must call all ponies that want to be in the pony army to Canterlot. I will train them all in five days. If you allow it, of course. But I will be needing all the horns that are in the Knight's chamber, as well as your, Luna's and Shining Armor's powers. We must be ready in time."

"I see. I will order as you say. Please come with me to the throne room" Celestia told us, then she said to two guards: "Please bring my sister and Shining Armor in the throne room as well."

The two guards bowed and left. We followed Celestia to the throne room. We waited for the others to come, before I said:

"Now that we are all here, I have something to tell all of you. Princess Celestia knows already but you don't. The enemy army will attack in five days." Both Luna and Shining Armor were speechless and their faced betrayed worry and defeat.

"What are we going to do? We are as good as defeated" Shining Armor said.

"No, we are not. I have a plan" I said. They looked at me and were only ears. "First thing first. we must make sure that the ponies at the border of Equestria are evacuated. Princess Luna, please do this as soon as this meeting ends. Tell them to go the their relatives in other pony towns or in Canterlot. Next, until tomorrow morning, we have to gather all the ponies that want to be part of the pony army. Shining Armor, this task falls to you. Please organise them outside Canterlot on that field in the west. Then, in the next 4 days, I,Rainbow Dash, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna and you, Shining Armor, will be training them. And in the last day, we will sort the troops into three main forces we will call Corps. We will have the Recon corp, lead by Rainbow Dash and composed of pegassi, the Defender corp, made of unicorns and led by you Shining Armor, and the Infantry corp, led by me. The roles of this corps are in their names. We will also have a Special corp, which will be composed of me, Dash, Twilight Sparkle, Spike, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie."

"I see. But how exactly do you plan to train all those ponies?" Shining Armor asked.

"It is rather simple. With the help of the other 12 horns in the Knight's room, and us five, we will create a massive DreamScape, as Gladir would call it, in which time passes different. For 4 days, the program will be this: 2 hours of physical training in the morning, with a break for breakfast, then another 2 hours of physical training. Then, 4 hours of DreamScape training, where we will teach tehm strategy, mind defense, archery and swordmanship, followed by a break for eating lunch. Then, another 4 hours of DreamScape. After that, another 2 hours of physical training with a break for dinner and another hour of training after dinner and then 8 hours of sleep."

"This might just work" Luna commented.

"Yeah...it is quite an ambitious plan" Shining Armor said.

"One more thing Shining Armor. We need some battle gear for all the ponies. And an emblem of the army to increase their moral and make them be united. We even have a design for our emblem. A white flag with a grey shield in the middle. Over the shield there are two wings that cross themselves, one cyan and one dark blue. In the point where this two wings cross there will be two vertical unicorn horns. This emblem will represent both the leaders of Equestria, as well as all races of ponies in Equestria. As for armor, I think the basic design of the old knights is good for everyone. As for weapons, a bow, a sword and a knife, along with some arrows should be enough. So, please take care of this Shining Armor. That, of course if anyone in this room had a better idea" I said.

"You are surely the one from the prophecy, the guy with the plan. Only one question though, are you sure you can train all of them?" Shining Armor said.

"No, I am not. But nothing is sure in war" I said.

"Very well. I now declare this as an official plan. Let's get to it" Celestia said.

"One more thing, princess. If we want this to succed, we need to finish that training today, so that in the next days I can focus on the training of the ponies" I said.

"We will...Luna, please take my place while me, Daniel and Rainbow Dash finish the training. That, of course, after you evacuate the ponies at the border of Equestria" Celestia said.

"Yes, of course" Luna said.

"Okay, let's get to work" I said. All of us nodded and both Luna and Shining Armor teleported to do what they had to. Me and Dash followed Celestia in the room under the throne to finish our training. When we descended in the library, we found three pillows and all the three of us sat down. We concentrated and entered a DreamScape made by Celestia.

'Now, let's not waste any time. All the spells in that book are difficult because of only one thing: the power they require. If until now, both of you used magic in a simple way: imagine something and you get it done. This thing is more complicated, because the outcome needs to be prolongued for a bigger duration of time than the instant of the other spells. In other words, when dealing with this kind of spells, you don't have to imagine the outcome, but the process that you can stop at any second. Now try doing what I told you with the barrier spell' Celestia said.

Both me and Dash tried it the way Celestia said. We managed with great amount of concentration to achieve a barrier.

'Good. Now, try casting it on each other' Celestia said.

If what we did earlier was difficult, this was maddening. It took us almost 10 minutes of concentration to achieve it. The we lowered it and tried again. 7 minutes. And again. 3 minutes. We were getting better at focusing on the task. And again. 1 minute. The last time it was instant. We tried to cast it again on ourselves. Again instant.

'Okay, now let's try it. I'll be sending ojects flying at you and we will have to see how long it keeps up' Celestia said.

She began making knives and arrows appear and fly towards our barriers. We managed to hold them on ourselves. Then we tried them on each other. Again, it was a success.

'Okay, now try enlarging the radius' Celestia said, never stopping with the knives and arrows. We did enlarge the radius to about 10 meters around us, until my barried failed to defend a knife that cut my hand a little.

'Daniel, don't panic. Try that healing spell. The weak one' Celestia said.

I did it and it worked. It was quite easy in fact.

'Good. With the other spells you should have no problem. The hardest is the barrier. But, just to be sure, let's try them' Celestia said.

-Some time later-

'Okay. You managed to do each of the spells. Now, I just want to tell you something so that you can know your value. No one in the history of magic known to ponies managed to extend the barrier to more than three meters around himself, and no more than half around another pony. And to do so while under attack...not even Gladir. Now, that is something you must be proud about. I now declare your training complete. And remeber, anything is possible, as long as you have the right way to imagine it. Let's go back to Camterlot" Celestia said.

When we were back and out of the library, I looked at the clock. It was almost 8 in the evening, but we managed to complete our training. We were still in the throne room, when Celestia said:

"Please stay just a little more so we can be sure we have evrything prepared for tomorrow. Shining Armor and Luna should be back in a couple of minutes" Celestia said.

While we waited for them to come, we tried the barrier for real. Then I got an idea:

"Princess, it is possible to make this barrier thought-proof or to distribute it to each amd every pony in an army?"

"It woukd but the energy necessary for this would be huge" Celestia said.

"Sister, I have done as Daniel said. All the towns at the border of Equestria are deserted" Luna said, teleporting in the throne room.

"All the pony in the army are on the field, sleeping so that they can be up at the time they require tp be tomorrow. And I have ordered the making of 40,000 armors with the emblem Daniel said" added Shining Armor, he too teleporting in the room.

"And these two right here managed to do an instant barrier of tem meter radius on each other" Celestia said.

Both Shining Armor and Luna had their mouths hanging.

"Anyway, it is late and if we want to train the army, we need to get to sleep. At 6 tomorrow, I'll be expecting all of you here so we can take the horns and go to the field" Celestia added. We all nodded and me and Dash teleported in our room. We went straight to bed, and met under the pine as every night, to decide what should the ponies in the army do tomorrow. This could verry well be our last sleep together in such a relaxing and confortable place.

**I hope you enjoyed. If you did a review is highly appreaciated. Also, any mistakes in spelling and such, please send them in a PM.**

**The song refered in this chapter is "Hearts on fire" by Hammerfall.**

**Quote of the day:"Lost your mind you have. Please another biscuit to me you give or else kill your dog I will" my best friend to me, in his best Yoda voice, when I didn't want to give him another Oreo. He is addicted to those biscuits. And, no, I don't have a dog...so dude, what are you going to kill? :)))**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hi there everyone. Here comes the newest chapter for this story. As I said previously, last chapter was the last filler for some time, so let's dive right into it. Enjoy :D**

Chapter 13 : For those about to fight

'So, do you think we should be rough in their first day here?' Dash asked me, as we were enjoying our company under the pine.

'It really depends. If they behave and are serious, than we can be less scarry, but if they start to moan and stuff like that...well, we will become a little harsh on them. After all it is the army and we only have 4 days to meke them both strong and serious' I said.

'I see...should we teach them anything from the Knight things?' Dash asked me.

'AS much as I hate to say this, we might need to. At least the Special corp. That is, if we want to be victorious. BUt don't start with that today. Maybe on third day. That should be a good moment to start, besides, we need to talk with Gladir first. We will talk today and decide if we should do that' I said.

'Right. Why do I have the feeling we are forgeting something?' Dash asked all of a sudden.

'Maybe because we might be a little late. It is almost 6 in the morning. When we wake up, we should put the uniforms to be a little formal. Also, I just thought about it, but we might need to check them for spyes' I said.

We woke up the next second, grabbed our uniforms, dressed up nad teleported in the throne room. Celestia was already there as was Luna, but no trace of Shining Armor.

"Good morning" Luna and Celestia greeted.

"Good morning. Where is Shyning Armor?" me and Dash asked.

"He is on the field, getting the recruits ready. Why?" Celestia said.

"A thought just crossed my mind. What if there are any spyes among the ponies there? WE should check them before teaching them" I said.

"I see. We should do that, but first let's retrieve the horns from the Knight's room" Celestia said.

We all followed here down the stairs and in the room. Gladir's ghost appeared and said:

"Very nice of you all to visit. With what may I be of service?"

"I am afraid that we need the horns inside here for about 4 days to train 40,000 ponies at the same time in the DreamScape" I said.

"That is impossible. You do not have that strength" Gladir said a little surprised.

"Excuse me Gladir, but they managed a barrier on one another under fire, for a long time and with a radius of 10 meters, so I think with the power of the horns, they might be able to pull it off. Plus me, Luna and Shining Armor will help" Celestia said.

"A ten meter barrier on one another under fire and for long time? That is impossible...I know of only one pony, and no human, for that matter, that managed to do something similar, but only for a small period of time and with a radius of 3 meters. I want to see it before I can give you the horns" Gladir said.

We went with Gladir in a short visit in his DreamScape and he said:

'Okay. Put the barrier up on each other at the maximum radius. Fellow Knights, please witness this so we can all agree on this fact.' All the other Knights appeared and looked at us.

We did what Gladir said and he began attacking with magic and physical attacks, but we were both confortable inside the barrier. After what seemed like more time then necessary, Gladir stopped and said:

'I still can't believe my eyes. Very well, you may take the horns, but please bring them back.'

We returned to the real world, took the horns and we teleported to the field. There, on the field a small stage had been built, where a microphone has been brought. I stood at the microphone, with Dash and Shining Armor on my right and Celestia and Luna on my left. We looked over the ponies and I said:

"My fellow ponies. My name is Daniel Zerk. This here is Rainbow Dash. As you all might know, we will be soon facing a great enemy, the Evil, or on his name, Lord Morbidus. That is why we need to establish this army. This is why we need ponies like you to fight for the good of Equestria. This is the good part. The bad part is that we are facing an army twice bigger than ours and that they will be attacking in four days, so time is of the essence. Listen carefully to what I tell you. There might be spyes among us, so I am going to test you all. Please be still for a moment and I will be done. Oh, and don't fight it."

I concentrated upon all 13 horns and with Dash covering my back, I ventured and checked in a sweep all 40,000 ponies.

"Okay. There are no spies here. This is a good thing. Now, I will tell you how the training will go. First, it is divised in two: physical training for making you stronger and training in the DreamScape, for everything else. Now, many of you will be confused, but I will do my best to explain everything to you once we get there. We will start with two hours of physical training. After that, you are all allowed to make a small break of 10 minutes, then another two hours of physical training. And before that, please divide these army in three: pegassy on the left, unicorns on the right, and earth ponies in the center. After that, I will assign you the Captains that will tell you what to to."

After I saw all ponies following orders with no joking around and going in formation as I instructed, I sau there were about 13,000 pegassy, 10,000 unicorns and 17,000 earth ponies. Then I said:

"Good. Unicorns, your Captain will be Shining Armor. Pegassy, Rainbow Dash here will be your captain. Earth ponies, I will be the one teaching you. SOme of you might be wondering why are the Princesses here. The two of them will help me with the training in the DreamScape. Now Captains please go to your group and begin physical training."

Both Dash and Shining Armor went to the respecive groups and began giving the orders for physical training, like push-ups, running, speed-flying and so on. I myself gave the orders to the earth ponies to start with some stretching, then push-ups and from there to work every part of their body. After two hours I returned to the microphone and said:

"Okay, Everyone is doing great so far. You can all have a ten-minute break."

Ten minutes later, we all resumed training, and after another two hours of physical training, we stopped. I went back to the microphone and said:

"Okay. Great job with this physical training. We will have 15 minutes of break for lunch. Princesses if you will..." Luna and Celestia made 40,000 portions of food appear and distributed them with magic at all ponies.

"While you all eat, me, the Captains and the Princesses will give each one of you a pillow. The pillow is not for sleep. When we are finished, I will tell you more" I said in the microphone. Then I turned towards Dash and the others and said:

"Okay. This is how we are going to do this. I will be the focal point of this DreamScape. We will build in the minutes before letting them in, secure connections between our minds. We will use my mind as the focal point, since it will be the one connected to all 13 horns. Let's begin creating the connections." It didn't take long and we replicated the training ground from the real world there, only a lttle more organized.

'Okay we are ready. Let's go back and tell them what they have to do' I said.

When we returned to the real world, all the ponies were about done with eating and were placing their pillows. I went back to the microphone and said:

"Okay everyone, lunch break is over. Please go back into your formations and sit down on youe pillows in a similar position to what Rainbow Dash will show you. Rainbow, if you will..."

Rainbow sat down, and after a couple of moments everypony was on their pillows, including Celestia, Luna and Shining Armor. I said:

"Okay. Now, all you have to do is to concentrate on me, like you wanted to see every thought I have, but only when Rainbow will put her hoof up. When that happens, please concentrate on me while keeping your breath steady."

Then I sat down, and with the help of all the others, I managed to keep the DreamScape stable. Then Dash put up her hoof. On the stage in the DreamScape, we were all overseeing the ponyes that began to appear. The first were the unicorns, and then all the others. After I made sure that everyone was in the DreamScape and that I could keep it stable, I put up the barrier around the DreamScape, just in case. Then, I said:

'Okay. Everypony, please go into your formations. I haven't told you this before, but the formations you are in will represent the three corps of our army. The pegassy will make up the Recon Corp, led by Rainbow Dash, the unicorns will make up the Defender Corp, led by Shining Armor and the earth ponies will make up the Infantry Corp, led by me. There will be a fourth Corp, called the Special corp, which will be made up by Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Spike, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and me. I will ask everyone in the fourth corp remain where they are when I will say who goes where, all except Rainbow Dash and me. Now, listen very carefully, this place we are innow is not real. It is a world created by me in my mind in which you can all train. I chose this method so that I can supervise everypony here. There will be 4 real hours of DreamScape-ing before a snack break in the real world and another 4 hours. Now, in the first 4 hours, I will unfortunately talk a lot, since I have to explain you some things about this place. The main idea is that today's training will be on swordmanship. Now, as I said before, the DreamScape is a lace in my mind where you all are connected with your minds. To make this verry easy for you, you must not lose concentration. After a couple of minutes, your body will enter the meditative state in which is almost impossible to lose concentration. That is the moment when you will fell like this world is real. It should happen right about now. Now, any injury you get here during the training is just imaginative, because of a barrier I put up that won't let your bodies to get injured, but, in a real battle, any injury in this place is real in the real life, so keep that in mind, just in case. As for how will teh training here go, you will soon find out you will tire harder and be more receptive to what I say, so the training will be continuous for 4 hours straight. I am the only one who will break this training at the end of those 4 hours. As far as skills, me and my team will demonstrate everything you need to know before you all train. We will show you what you have to do and then we will overwatch your training. The skills you learn here, you will remember when you go back to the real world. Easy as that. Now, it looks like it took less than 4 hours as I estimated, so if anyone got any questions, now is the time. Yes?'

'How did you make this world?' a pegassy asked full of curiosity.

'I am afraid I can't tell you that. It is a secret of the Knights, but don't let that bother you. Any more questions? No? Okay. Pegassi, please follow Dash to that part of the training ground. Unicorns please follow Shining Armor to the other side. The rest of you please remain where you are. Princess Luna please go with Shining Armor so that you can provide them with swords faster and help him. Princess Celestia, You will go with Rainbow Dash to be of help to her. You will all hear my voice when the time is up and I'll tell you what is next. Dismissed.'

Everyone went to their places, following the right leader. The special corp remained behind and came forth to me. I said:

'Okay, listen up everypony. Infantry stay where you are, Special corp go behind me so that I can be in center. Also, please put your hoof up in the air so I can give you swords.'

All did as I said and I summoned swords for everyone and then said:

'Okay. Here are the basics.' And I demonstrated them the basics of swordmanship as well as how to block, side-step and attack, including lunge attack. Then I said:

'Choose a partner and start fighting. The swords have dull edges so you can't cut yourselves. I will observe your progress. Start now.' Then I turned towards Special ops and said:

'Okay guys. You too, and also try to do it slightly faster than going through the forms. Figth for your lives. If you want I can sparr with each of you so that I see what you can.'

The sparring went well. Everypony in the Infantry got the movement of the sword, as well as everyone in the Special corp, where they got quite well really fast. As the four hours were really up, I said so that everyone heard me over the entire DreamScape:

'Everyone put down your blades. You are free to take a break for 15 minutes. Dismissed.'

We all went back to the real life for 15 minutes, getting our sore members moving and getting ready for the next session. After the break, we plunged riight into sparring and everyone got the sword at a good level of knowledge. After the second part of the DreamScape training ended I said:

"I hope you all learned something from there. I saw really great progress made by all of you. You all have 15 minutes to get dinner. Then we go to another 2 hours of physical training plus 10 minutes break and then another 2 hours before sleep, I am sorry if you consider this training cruel, but we have to protect Equestria and we only have 4 days to train an army so we have to get as much done as we can as fast as possible. I will talk again in 15 minutes."

To my surprise, I was greeted with a round of applause, and Twilight Sparkle sad in the name of all ponies:

"Daniel, we are all glad that we are able to defend our homes. I can only assume the giant effort you are making with holding a DreamScape for 40,000 ponies for 8 hours, and train all of them both physically and in the DeramScape. We will not let you down."

"I want to thank everypony here for the effort they are making, but this is only the first day. Please eat everyone and then we shall get back to bussiness. After we are done with all 4 days of training, you will all have 12 hours to get your moral up and get ready for battle. So eat up and become proud warriors" I said with a smile.

After everyone finished eating, and got to the third part of physical that day, another break came. This break was a short ten-minute one but more than enough so that everypony got their energy back. And after the last 2 hour physical training, everyone got to sleep in a sleeping bag provided by Celestia. Me and Dash shared a double sleeping bag. We fell asleep quick because we were exausted. Under the pine tree however, we planned all the other trainings. In the morning, we got up a little faster than the rest so that we could just enjoy the rising of the sun together.

"You know Dash, I never believed you were such a good teacher" I said as I kissed her.

"Hmm, thanks, but I learned from the best" she said grinning and kissing me back. And we kissed for quite some time.

In my mind, however, I was really thinking if I should ask Dash to marry me. It would be the best thing ever to have Rainbow Dash as my wife. BUt my thoughts were washed away as a very familiar voice said:

"Do you need another moment, or are you two ready to discuss the plan of today's training?" It was indeed Shining Armor, with a sheepish smile on his face.

"You know it is rude to interrupt...but we are ready for the plan today. In fact, I will tell you all the plan for each and every day of training" I said, returning the smile.

I got up and with Dash by my side, we met the princesses and I told them the plan for the next three days. In the second day, everyone will be learning archery. In the third day, everypony will learn specific things for their corps: Recon will be learning stealth and patience, Infantry will be learning boosting attacks and attention, Defenders will be learning weather spells as well as basic healing. The Special Corp will learn all of these, along with camouflage. On the fourth day, they will all receive theyr armor, bows and swords and will be practicing everything they learned in the real world to be sure they got everything down and they will all get tested on what they are doing.

**-3 days later-**

"I am happy to announce that the Equestrian army is ready for battle. One last detail everypony. Please don't let your comrades die tomorrow. You are all free for tonight. We will meet here tomorrow morning so that the teleport groups will be leaving for the border of Equestria. Congratulations everyone. I am proud of you. Dismissed" I said to everyone and all ponies appaluded and then left to get reay for the day of tomorrow.

"To be honest, I did no believe that you will be able to pull that of. Congratulations" Shining Armor said as he patted my back and then teleported to get the guards ready and revise the plans.

"Congratulations indeed. Thanks to your and Rainbow Dash's efforts, we now have an army and our chaces against this Lord Morbidus have grown. I will be expecting you tomorrow morning in the throne room, just before we teleport for one final meeting regarding strategy and formation, before we move in our forward base" Celestia said, before she and Luna teleported away. That left only me and Dash in the field.

"Fancy a little race to the window of our room?" I asked with a grin on my tired face.

"OW,YOu are so on right now!" Dash said as she got ready for flying. I summoned my wings. I saw just now that my wings became bigger then before.

"Hey, Dash, it is just me, or my wings are bigger?" I asked confused.

"Ummm...they look a little bigger. Anway, on three. One two three!" she said as we both bolted to the sky in an ascending race, before, at the same time, going in a nose-dive. Dash, being the great flyer she is, made a Sonic Rainboom and, after I smiled at her and complimented while flying, we managed to get a tie when we landed in our room.

"Looks like our powers have grown and we are tied for today" I comment.

"Yeah. Maybe we should get an early race tomorrow just to be sure" Dash says grinning.

"I wish, but we have a war to take care of tomorrow. Let's just get a shower before we go to sleep. A relaxing shower, because we need our strength tomorrow" I said, making the look in her eyes go away, a little, before she regained it.

"I think that, for this time you are right, but you are going to pay double for that next time. Do we have a deal?" she says, with a devilish grin on her face.

"I don't see why not. Let's get fresh and get to sleep then. I have something to teach you while we are under the pine" I said.

"And what might that be?" she asked, getting excited again.

"You will see" I say smiling.

We go into the shower and I prepare the water, so that it is nice and warm. I helped Dash with her back and she helped me with mine. It was a relaxing shower and it was over rather quick. We got out and got ready for bed. When we fell asleep and we met under the pine tree, Dash asked:

'So...what is that you wanted to teach me?'

'I want to teach you 4 lyrics from a song. If, by any misfortune, something happens to you or to me in battle, sing this lyrics and I will be there to assist you. Remember my vision of the battle we both of us gone? I don't want that happening and I don't want to lose you' I said, getting a little serious.

'I see. I'll do my best to remember those 4 lyrics and to defend myself tomorrow. As I hope you will do. I just can't imagine going back to the life I had before meeting you' Dash said, kissing my cheek and looking me dead in the eyes.

'Of course. The lyrics go as follows:

I throw myself into the sea

Release the wave, let it wash over me

To face the fear I once believed

The tears of the dragon, for you and for me.'

'Got it sweety. I really wish I could hear the whole song, but I suppose it will have to wait, because, as you said, we need our strength. Now let's just have a restfull and enjoyable night, shall we?' Dash said with a smile.

'Indeed we should' I said with a similar smile. In that moment I took the decision that after all this is over I will surely propose to Dash. There is nothing that can stop me.

**-Meanwhile, in the prison of the castle-**

"Hey...Hey, please get me out of here" the goblin said to someone of similar size, only dressed in black and with a mask on his face.

"I am sorry, friend, but I have a mission and don't have room for failure" the strange creature said.

The creature sneaked past the guards and into a chamber. The walls of the chambers had pictures of Celestia and Luna together and other members of the royal family. The creature went to the bed in that room, where princess Luna was sleeping. He put a rag to her mouth, thing that woke her up. However, the rug was full of something that made her go asleep again. The creature took Luna out of the castle and into the field, where another goblin was waiting. They all teleported who knows where.

**-The next morning-**

"Sir. Sir, please wake up. It is an emergency" a guard said as he shook me awake.

"What is it?" I said half asleep, half awake.

"The prisoner sir. He said that he has something important to tell you" the guard said.

"Fine. I'll be there in a second. Dash...Dash we got work to do. Wake up" I said as calm as possible, after the guard left.

"Wh..what's wrong?" she mumbled as she woke up.

"The prisoner. He says that he needs to tell us something important" I said.

"And you believe him?" she asked.

"I am the only one with whom he co-operated up until now. If it is true, than yes" I said.

"Fine. Let's go" Dahs said, now full awake. We teleported down in the dungeons in front of the cell. The goblin saw us and said:

"Daniel, I heard you are called this way, there is something that you should know. Last night, a goblin thief was inside the castle. He had the mission to get Luna and take her to our Lord."

"Why are you telling me this? Why are you betraying your Lord?" I asked confused.

"Because, while I was locked up in here I realised he is the bad guy to say so. To be honest, I have been treated better her as a prisoner, than I was as a soldier in the ranks of his army" the goblin said.

"And why would any of these be true?" Dash asked.

"Because, last night this goblin thief came here, but he did not free me. This means my former Lord had give up on me, he betrayed me, so...an eye for an eye, I suppose" the goblin said.

"Thank you for sharing this information. If it is true, than, after the war, I shall personally free you" I said.

"I thank you, Knight of Truth and Light. May your path be well guided" the goblin said bowing deep in respect.

His behaviour was strange, but I took the information and went to Luna's room. She was not there and there was a funny smell in the room that made you drowsy. I knew than that what the goblin was true.

"Guards!" I cried.

Two guards came in and almost fell because of the smell.

"One of you go and tell Celestia that her sister has been kidnapped. The other one, place the palace on high alert" I said as I went through the room searching for clues. I only found the rag and it smelled like chloroform. I then took Dash and with her we went before Celestia.

"Princess, as you have been informed, your sister had been kidnapped" I said as I enetered the throne room.

"Indeed she has been. But my sister is strong. She won't speak. We will save her, but we need to prepare the Special corps for an infiltration mission. You think you can handle it?" Celestia said serious.

"With all do respect princess, I think we must save first Equestria, and then your sister. I know she is family and that you feel the need to save her, but if we don't face the army today, Equestria might be doomed. We can't let our feelings get the better of us. Plus, for the moment, she is safe. They won't kill her, because they need information. As you yourself said, she is strong" I said, hoping that my diplomacy is well thought.

"I...you are right. We must save Equestria before we save my sister. Let's get moving" Celestia said with a tear in her eye.

We all met with the army on the field, and while Celestia told Shining Armor what was going on, I went to the microphone and said:

"Okay. Everypony listen up. Today we will fight the enemy. Some of you might come back, some of you might not. While you fight, remember one thing: you are fighting for your home, for your family, for your friends and for Equestria. Now, I'll be telling you the plan we decided upon. The Infantry will be in front. The first line will have swords drawn, ready to defend, the rest of Infantry, as well as the Scouts, will use their bows, until the enemy is too close to fight with the bow. The Defenders will protect everyone by blasting away the enemy arrows with gusts of wind. Then, the Infantry will fight with swords, while the Scouts will lay cover fire on the enemy archers. The Defenders job will be defending from incoming dangers, until they need to fight. That is all. I wish everyone good luck. Please split up in groups of 20. Me and Dash will be teleportning you there. You will be then organised as I told you before, by Shining Armor and the Princess. Gear up everypony. I will begin the teleportations in 10 minutes."

Ten minutes later, everyone was geared up, and me and Dash begun the teleportation. In about an hour, we teleported everypony. When we were all in place, one of the Scouts shouted:

"Incoming enemy army. There is a rider aproaching us."

"Hold your fire" I said as I went forth and met the rider. It was a goblin. He got of the horse and said:

"Greetings, Knight. I am sent here by my master to discuss the terms of your capitulation."

"Greeting fellow goblin. I am afraid we will not capitulate, and I expect neither will you. But between us two, I am really sorry for the war" I said.

"I am sorry to hear you are not capitulating. And between us, so are all the other goblins, because we aren't here of our own will, but under the power of our Lord. Farewell" the goblin said as he went back on his horse and left. I returned to the Equestrian army.

"What did he want?" Celestia asked.

"It was a peace treaty that stated we need to capitulate. I denied. Also, I found out that the goblins are here by force. BUt this is little matter. Get ready" I answered.

Then I talked to all the army:

"Listen up. For all of you that are here today. I want to salute you in sign of respect for you defending your homes. From this moment on, we are no longer strangers, we are brothers and sisters in arms. For all of you that are about to fight, I salute you."

Everyone cheered, and got ready. Me and Dash summoned Silverfang and Moonlight.

Suddenly, a war horn could be heard and the enemy army begun their charge.

"Here they come. At my signal, archers fire" I screamed.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter, I have been planning it from the beginning and wrote on it on several ocasions. If you did, please leave me a review and tell me your thoughts about what is going on so far.**

**The song refered for this chapter is "For those about to rock" by AcDc.**

**Quote of the day: "What in the name of heaven is this teacher doing?" I at a friend of mine while we were playing football inside the hallways of school and a teacher joyned us. (Awesome 8th grade :D. Kind of old, I know, but gold none the less)**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Here is the newest chapter for this story. It is a little short, but I had to chose between making two short ones or a bigger one. I chose two short ones. The other one will be up next week(probably). Please enjoy :D**

Chapter 14 : Tears of the dragon

"Here they come. At my signal archers fire" I cried.

The enemy kept getting closer and closer.

"Archers, take aim. Infantry first line, shields in front of you, second line, swords out. Rest of infantry, bows out. Defenders, get ready to deflect enemy arrows. Archers, at the count of three, fire. One...Two...Three...Fire!" I cried and a flock of over 20,000 arrows flew towards the enemy lines. The aim of our soldiers was true, and many of the enemy archers were dead. However, they kept pushing forward.

"Infantry, swords out. First line, keep your shields. Scouts, fly and shoot down upon them. Defenders, protect the Scouts. Get ready to defend your homes and fight for what you love most" I cried, as everyone cheered. Scouts all flew up, with Dash leading them, Defenders were beginning to work the magic, to protect them. Infantry was ready for getting the blow. The enemy was getting closer and closer. The arrows from their camp begun flying, only to be deflected by magic. Our arrows flew and hit. But they were many. Too many.

The enemy charge hit us. The ponies in the first line managed to push them, but from that moment, in the Infantry, it was everybody from himself. I was fighting left and right, cutting through armor, swords and flesh, killing enemy after enemy. I used magic every now and then to break a defense or to make my own stronger. I used the barrier on a couple of ponies that were pinned down. I helped them up and quickly healed their wounds. Then I was back into the mist of battle. Meanwhile, up in the air, Dash was leading aerial dives that cut through the enemy defense. She herself led a team of three ponies, all of them sorrounded by the barrier and flying low, cutting anything in their path. I kept fighting every enemy I saw. Then I felt a mind trying to get into mine. Most surely a goblin magician. I let him fall into the trap and then found out where Luna was, before making him kill himself. I told Dash:

'Go tell Celestia that her sister is in the Citadel, the main city of Lord Morbidus. He is interogating her as we speak.'

I saw Dash flying past me towards the camp as she told Celestia the message. But I didn't let that distract me. I just looked over the battlefield. Even though I was cutting enemy after enemy, their lines kept growing. That is when I realized their army was much bigger than we anticipated. I summoned my wings and put the barrier on me, before going up in the sky. From the I nose-dived, with my sword in front of me. When I was almost to hit the ground, I leveled with it, just a couple of inches from it and flew at an incredible speed through the enemy lines, with my sword empowered by magic, just going through enemy legs, like knife through butter. I did a couple of this passes, before summoning another sword and doing a third nose-dive, only this time, with swords at the level of my hips, I begun rotating. I spiraled through the enemy lines, the swords cutting how they could. Even so, the enemy lines didn't seem to retreat. The enemy kept coming, attacking every and each pony. The Defenders were trying their best to protect them, but even so, a lot of ponies died. We were greatly outnumbered. And we hadn't seen yet the commandos. We had to be realistic. The odds were against us. We were outnumbered at least 10 to one, and, even though I killed at least 20,000 enemies in the passes I made through them, it was nothing. Not even a scratch. This army was huge and unending. We kept fighting, however, because we had to defend our homes. After a couple of hours of fighting, the enemy lines begun to thin a little.

"The enemy is thinning in numbers. Continue the attack" I cried with all the power I had. The fight that we fought happened on a flat terrain of about 10 square kilometers, so my order had to be passed around. We begun tearing at their numbers and the enemy begun slowly retreating. That is, until we heard it:

"Well hello little ponies and Knight. I see you managed to thin the number of my army, but at what cost? You now have a little bit more than half of yours. I, however, have another army ready at the Citadel. Do you have another army ready, little Knight? Or do you plan to fight all my army just with you precious little girlfriend beside you? I say we make things a little more interesting. You will see what I mean in a couple of moments." It was indeed the voice of Lord Morbidus himself, as he spoke to me in my dreams.

That is when I felt it. It was like an train that hit me square in my mind. In a split second, I realized what happened. Something was wrong with Dash. So wrong that the connection between us, that we kept open at any time and with any cost, broke. That could only mean...

And then I saw it. In the middle of the enemy army, it was a glowing figure of a pony. Around the figure, there were several colored balls flying around. The balls formed a rainbow. I ken then who it was and what was it doing. It was Dash and she was singing.

"I throw myself into the sea

Release the wave, let it wash over me

To face the fears I once believed

Tears of the dragon, for you and for me."

All the fight stopped. The enemy wasn't attacking. The ponies weren't attacking. Everyone began singing those 4 lyrics. I just slowly wlked towards the light form that was only 10 meters from me, as I said:

"Don't worry, Dash. I am here. I will help you. I will save you."

The figure looked me dead in the eyes, and I saw tears falling from them, as she shook her head in a declining motion. Tears began falling from my eyes, and I felt my body failing me. The ponies and enemies alike were singing, while the figure began fading away.

"Dash, don't go!" I cried as I was slowly stumbling towards the now fading figure. My legs begun failing me and I fell on my knees, with the sword in my hand.

"Dash, don't leave me alone here. Please Dash. Please. Don't leave me. NOOOOOOOOO!" I cried with my eyes closed as the fading figure was gone. I raised my sword and implanted it tip first in the earth, with tears flowing like rivers. A tear touched the handle of the sword and it started vibrating and glowing golden. Then a massive wave of pure energy went across the entire field, with me being the center. It instantly killed the remaining of the enemy army, while at the same time, growing flowers and trees along the path towards Dash's apparently uninjured body. I got up and flew as fast as I could towards the place. I found Dash there, on the ground, on her back. Her eyes were closed and she had tears on her cheeks. She looked like she was just sleeping. I picked her up, flew towards our main camp. I still had tears in my eyes. I saw a lot of ponies looking at me with sad eyes. I reached the tent, where Celestia and Shining Armor were already waiting for me. I entered the tent with Dash in my arms and tears still falling on my cheeks. My sword was gone. So was my shield. I just put Dash on a bed and begun healing her. No one tried to stop me, but, no matter what I tried, she wouldn't wake up.

"Come on Dash. Stop joking around and wake up. Don't leave me like this. Please Dash, wake up. I need you!" This is what I kept saying over and over again, burning as much magic as I could, trying to wake her up.

"Daniel, I am sorry" Celestia said. "I am sorry that you and Rainbow Dash had to be part of this. I am sorry for everything" she continued.

"No Princess" I said. " It was not your fault." My head was now pounding with pain, and tears were still falling. I never turned around or stopped what I was doing. " It was my fault that I couldn't protect the one I love. It was fucking fault that Dash is now in this condition. My fucking fault that Dash is dead. Only my fucking fault" I kept saying as the horrible truth begun catching up with me. I slumped over and fell on my knees again, tired and weak.

"Only my fucking fault" I said one last time, as I passed out.

I woke up in a tent, with my head bandaged. It the tent were none other than my friends of Ponyville. It was Twilight who said, as soon as I opened my eyes:

"I am sorry Daniel. I am really sorry. For us, Dash was our friend that always joked around and disobeyed rules. And we miss her already. But for you, she was your love. I don't know how do you feel right now, but we are all very sorry." She ended her speech, before getting out of the tent, eyes in tears, followed by the others, who were also crying. I? I had no more tears. My eyes were dry. I had no idea what to do. There was one thing that I could still do to honor Dash. To bury her and end this stupid war. This war started by a stupid person, that deserved to be dead. A person that killed my marefriend. A person whose death would bring the end of this useless and honorless war. Lord Morbidus. This war was all his fault. I guess it is true what they say about wars. Wars bring out the inhuman part of someone. Wars make us fight for no reason. The only way to end this war was to kill the person who started it.

That was the moment I decided that I would do anything to kill that bloody piece of evil called Lord Morbidus. He will die by my hand, Justice's hand. And I? What would I do next? Without Dash, life in Equestria has no meaning for me. I mean yes, I have friends, yet, that will be changed by this war. I have a house. But what can I do in this solitude? Drink my sorrow? Read books? Party with Pinkie Pie? No. None of this is possible now. I am too broken to be repaired. Only one thing could fix me, and that is Dash. She is the one and only that can fix me now.

How did I get from winning to losing everything that I cared about and that I swore to protect? I don't know, and I think I don't really want to know. I only want my love back. I want that my beloved Dash would come back.

With that thought I fell asleep. I begun wandering the sanctuary we built. Our secret place. I went under the pine, the place we used to stay and talk about what-not. I stood down there and I begun crying like a baby. After a time, however, I stopped. I got up and walked towards the forest behind me to the hidden rock scene. The scene we never had the time to use, because of this stupid war.

I woke up. I was sweating a cold sweat. I took the horn around my neck and concentrated upon him. In a second, I was in the DreamScape. I decided to ask one more person on how to save Rainbow Dash. Here he was. Gladir was looking at me with a smile on his face.

'Daniel. How good to see you! I guess the battle went well since you are here in one piece. But where is your friend?'

I remained silent and a tear fell from my eye. Heh. Looks that after all, I still had some more tears.

Gladir smile faded in a second and then he said:

'Don't tell me that she...'

I didn't. Instead, I asked:

'Merlin, please tell me there is a way to save her. Please tell me that I can do something to save her. Please, Merlin, please.'

His face fell and a single solitary tear fell from his right eye. He made a small break, before saying:

' I am sorry, Daniel, but I know of no way to save her. I am really sorry. I'll leave you to yourself now, because I can see that you need some time on your own. You are welcomed to stay here as long as you want. Goodbye Daniel. I hope to see you at the end of this stupid war that begun with me and that monster of a man.'

And Gladir was gone. I wandered through the DreamScape, tears still falling. I decided to go back.

I opened my eyes, only to see that is was morning. And what a horrible morning this was. The morning when the burrial should take place. I took my helmet and wemt out of the tent to reach Celestia's.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Some of you might think I am a cruel person, but I am not. Anyway, a review is very much apreaciated. I also decided to stop that Quote of the day thing for now. It will be back I think, but not for the next couple of chapters.**

**Song referred in this chapter is "Tears of the dragon" by Bruce Dickinson (from Iron Maiden).**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Hi there. I think this is the shortest chapter so far, but there will come bigger ones. Please enjoy :D**

Chapter 15 : Fool me

As I got out of the tent, I met Shining Armor. He just looked at me and put a hoof on my shoulder, before walking away. As he left, I could see a tear falling from his eye. He was crying. He was crying for me. For my pain. For my loss. A tear escaped my eye. A lonely tear, before I started walking again towards Celestia's tent. The guards there, stopped me and offered their condoleances, saying that Rainbow Dash herlself saved their lives yesterday, before letting me go inside to see Celestia.

"Daniel" Celestia said, as I entered the room.

"Princess" I said out of respect, and bowed.

"How are you feeling? Are you alright" Celestia asked me, with worry in her eyes.

"It hurts. And it will forever hurt. But maybe with time, it'll get easier" I said, another lone tear falling from my eye.

"Daniel...we will hold the burrial ceremony today. It will be at sunset. You are free to chose the place and the way. After today, we have no other choice but to move forward towards the Citadel to end the war and bring Lord Morbidus to justice. Also, we need to save my sister. I am sorry once again, Daniel. If there was anything I could do..." Celestia said, coming closer to me and placing a hoof on the same shoulder Shining Armor did.

"Thank you, Princess" I said.

"From now on, we walk on equal ground. You can call me and my sister on our names" Celestia said, before I bowed and got outside of the tent.

Once outside, I looked around me and decided to go visit the medical ward. I went to see the injured ponies. I needed to do something to keep me distracted from the sorrow I felt, so I decided to help the injured ponies.

As I entered the ward, I saw several nurses and doctors walking from here to there, helping patients. I spoke out loud:

"If everyone would like to pay a little attention to me." Every pony stopped from what they were doing and looked at me.

I just closed my eyes, connected with every mind in that room, and in a matter of half a minute, I healed everyone. Then I spoke to them:

"Consider this the gift of fighting another day. I give it to you all today, on behalf of Rainbow Dash. Now, if any pony here would be capable of telling me where she is, I would thank that pony very much."

An older pony doctor came at me and said:

"Knight, we thank you for your gift. Your friend is in a separate tent, behind this one."

All the ponies in the room stood up and bowed deep, before I nodded, left another tear to touch the ground and left. I went to the tent behind the medical ward. The tent was guarded by the two ponies I saved yesterday. They saw me coming closer and bowed, while I entered the tent. I heard a couple of 'I am sorry for your loss', before they returned to their duty.

I sat down on the chair beside the bed and I took Dash's hoof in my hand. Her hoof was colder than usual, but not like that of a dead one. I just sat there, looking at her like I was expecting her to wake up from a moment to the next, tears falling from my eyes like rain. I felt someone coming in and then leaving. I knew who it was. It was Fluttershy, one of Dash's oldest and best friends. I didn't call her back. I wanted to be alone for a moment. Then I said in a whisper:

"I am sorry I could not protect you. I am not worthy of the Knight title. How could I ever protect Equestria, if I wasn't able to protect my love. I just wanted to say that I will love you forever and a day. You are and always will be my Dashie, my smile and my happiness."

Then I stood up, dried my tears and left the tent, in search of a good place for a forever resting place for Dash.

I wandered for some time until I reached a forest. It was a forest that was similar to the Everfree Forest. I looked around and I found a pine that looked similar to the one where we used to sit under. I went over to it and sat down. If there was a better place, it could only be the pine in the Everfree Forest. I summoned my sword, and with it, I cut down a couple of smaler pines. I worked them a little, until they resembeled a bed of some sorts. Then, I proceded to using magic. With it, I managed to grow a beautifull flower bed on the small pines. The flowers were rooted and alive, so that they would be like that forever. Then, I turned around and went back to the camp. I flew all the way there and did a lot of aerobatics I learned from Dash. I even tried a Sonic Rainboom, but I couldn't do it. It was her move and only hers. I landed in front of Celestia's tent and entered.

"I have chosen the pine tree that has a flowerbed at its roots in the forest east from here" I said.

"I see. I will inform everyone" Celestia said.

I left her tent without another word. I went to the baracks to have something to eat. I barely ate a couple of pancakes and an apple, before feeling full. It was only 2 in the afternoon, so I decided to get some training. In front of my tent, I summoned my sword and began going through the forms of the art of swordmanship, adding my own variations and perfecting them.

" Daniel, would you honor me, by sparring with me?" Shining Armor said, as he aproached me from behind. " It will take your mind of things" he continued with a friendly and understanding smile. I looked at him and nodded. Shining Armor prepared his stance while I prepared mine. We started trading blows. Slowly at first, but then we begun to see the patterns in out fighting styles and our speed begun increasing. Towards the end of our small, sparring session, we would fight without thinking, our swords moving from reflex. That is how good we read our styles. However, it had to end at a point, so I improvised a move that made Shining Armor lose his sword.

"Nice improvisation. I didn't see that coming. Well, I suppose that concludes our little sparring. I'll have to tell, you are quite good with a blade. But you must forgive me now, because I have some guard duty I need to attend to. Farewell, Daniel" Shining Armor said as he recovered his sword and saluted me with his right hoof at his forehead. I responded to his salute, and then returned to practicing my little agenda of blows. After a time, I got really bored, so I decides it was time to stop. I made my sword disappear and went in my tent. I just sat down on the bed and thought.

What would my life become now? Will I continue to act as a Knight after this war ends? Will I live in Ponyville after this war ends, or will I move in the Everfree Forest, far away from any known form of civilisation? What was going to happen to me?

I was scared. Scared for me. Scared for my friends. Scared for Equestria. I just couldn't sit there in bed and...and do nothing. What would be this war without me? Heck, without me, there wouldn't be a war. Everyone would live their lives as usual, none of my friends would be in the army or dead and Pinkie would throw parties after parties.

"Sir, the sun is about to set" a male pony voice said.

I went outside the tent to see that there were the two guards that guarded Rainbow's tent. They bowed and then one said:

"Sir, we thought that maybe you would like to carry Captain Rainbow Dash yourself, instead of letting others to do it."

"Indeed I want. Thank you" I said as I begun walking towards Dash tent. They followed me. While I was walking, I saw more and more ponies gathering. I reached the tent, went inside, took Dash and went back outside. I summoned my wings and, with Dash in my arms, I begun slowly flying towards our destination. I thought that she would like a flight for the last time.

We reached the place soon. Celestia and Shining Armor were there too. As were all the members of each military corp. I landed beside the flowerbed I made and Celestia begun speaking:

"Dear ponies, we are here today with a heavy hearth. Our soldier, Captain, Knight, but more important, our friend, and for Daniel, his lover, had been killed on the battlefield by the merciless Lord Morbidus. My condoleancies, Daniel, and I promose you that we will end this war and we will bring this monster to justice. If anyone else wants to say a few words before we proceed further, I invite him or her to speak."

"I didn't know Rainbow Dash too well as a pony, but I knew her as a soldier. I saw her training other ponies, I saw her fighting and defending others with her life on the line. For this I want to salute her" Shining Armor said.

He raised his right hoof to his forehead, and all the other ponies followed him, all raising their hoof in a salute. After a couple of moments, I nodded and then kneed near the flowerbed. I put Dash down and then talked to her for the last time.

"Hi there Dashie. I...I just want to tell you goodbye." This is the moment when it started raining. " I just want you to forgive me for not being able to protect you. I am sorry. I wanted to do my best, but I failed you." This is where I began crying, my tears mixing with the rain and falling on Dash's chest. "I know you are a great prankster, so please do something, one last thing for me. Fool me and Death and return to me. Please do this final miracle for me. Please Dashie, I won't be able to go on without you. Please..." I mumbled, before giving her a last hug, with my head on her chest. Silence. I could only hear the rain.

I was just about to give up, when I heard it.

Bum-bum. Bum-bum. Bum-bum.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I don't know when the next one will come out, but probably soon. Also, next chapter is going to have a surprise, so stay tuned. And don't forget to review.**

**The song referred in this chapter is "Save me" by Avenged Sevenfold.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hi everyone. Here is the newest chapter, with a little surprise. In this chapter an OC of a good friend of mine, HYBRID BATTLESHIP INFINITY210 on his name, will make his magical apparition and will stay with us for the rest of the story. The OC's name is John Night.**

**Enough ramble, please Enjoy the chapter :D**

Chapter 16 : Path towards healing

Bum-bum. Bum-bum. Bum-bum.

My eyes snapped open and tears begun falling again. This time they were tears of hapiness.

"You're alive. Thank you Dash. I don't know how you did it, but thank you" I mumbled in her ear.

"Daniel, are you okay?" celestia asked coming closer, seeying me still hugging Dash and crying. I looked at her with a crooked smile and said between the tears:

"She is alive."

"Daniel, I know that you wish Rainbow Dash to still be alive, but that is impossible" Celestia said, putting a hoof on my shoulder.

"No, no, no...you son't understand. I heard her hearthbeat. She is alive" I continued.

"That's impossible" Shining Armor said, as he came closer. "It might have been your imagination mixed with your sorrow" he said with a simpathetic smile.

"It was not my imagination. Hear for yourself" I said still crying and smiling at the same time. He shrugged and put his ear on Rainbow's chest, just over the hearth.

"I can't hear any...wait a minute" he said as he tried to hear harder.

Bum-bum. Bum-bum. Bum-bum.

His eyes widened and he looked at Celestia. He said only three words:

"She is alive."

Celestia turned towards the crowd and said:

"A doctor. We need a doctor over here. Rainbow Dash has a hearthbeat."

From the crowd emerged the doctor from the medical ward, along with Twilight, Rarity, Spike, Apple Jack, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, and all of them came towards us. The doctor kneeled beside Rainbow Dash and took her pulse. It was normal but weak. He said:

"Sir, I don't know how she has any pulse, because he hadn't any for a day and a half. We checked every hour. But I am really happy for you that she is alive."

"Celestia, I will take Rainbow now and teleport to the medical tent" I said.

"Go ahead" she said.

I teleported Dash to the medical tent and put her on a bed. I took a chair and sat down, before concentrating. I begun healing Dash's wounds. Even if she was still alive, the danger was still big. In about an hour, I managed to check and double-check for any wounds I might have missed, but I found none.

"How is she" Twilight said as she entered the tent.

"She is healthy, physically speaking, but she won't wake up" I said. "Where are the others?"

"Patrol and guard duty. Have you any idea why won't she wake up?" Twilight said.

"I don't know, but I have an idea who might. Please call Celestia here. I need to talk to her" I added, as I begun focusing on the only horn around my neck. I quickly entered the DreamScape and was greeted by Gladir:

'How do you feel, Daniel?' he asked.

'I am very happy. Today, just before the funeral ended, I found out Dash had a hearthbeat. That she was alive' I answered with a smile.

'Well, that is wonderfull news. Why isn't she here?' Gladir asked a little confused.

'That's the problem. I healed each and every wound on her body, but she won't wake up. Do you think it has anything to do with the magic Lord Morbidus uses?' I asked.

'There are many secrets in the dark side of magic. It might be connected with this. Celestia told me what happened during battle. I suspect that he used some curse on her in battle that was supposed to kill her, but she survived somehow. I remeber hearing about a magic much more stronger than the one of dark or friendship, but I can't recall too clear. I'll need time to meditate. In the meantime, maybe some of Celstia's books might be of help' Gladir said.

'Thank you. Please tell me as soon as you find something out' I said before leaving.

I returned to reality. I was back in the tent and Celestia just came in.

"What is that you wanted to talk with me about?" she asked.

"I wanted to ask you something. I healed all her wounds, but she won't wake up. If you have any idea, or any information in some book, could you bring it here?" I said.

"I don't know, but I have a book about black magic and how to counter it back in the castle. I'll teleport to get it" she said before she teleported away. I had an idea. I tried to connect my mand to Dash's but couldn't, for some reason. It wasn't making any sense. We always had the connection, even in our sleep. Why wouldn't it connect? I concentrated and imagined the connection as a road between to castles. It was a very wide road, but it seemed to be cut off. I could see Dash's castle, but I couldn't get there. I followed the road towards it, until the point where it was broken. What I saw amazed me. The connection hadn't been completely severed. A portion of about 5 centimeter wide of the road was still connected. That explained why I couldn't create a connection. It was still there.

I returned back to reality to find Celestia in the tent, with a book under her wing. She asked:

"Have you been able to talk to her?"

"No. I can't make a link, because there is already one, but it is too damaged and I cant repair it without her help" I answered.

"I found this book on dark curses. We might be able to find something" she said.

I took the book and thanked her, before saying:

"You know, I think we should remain on the defensive for now, until they atttack again. We might be able to cure Dash sooner if we focus only on this. Please bring my friends from Ponyville to help. Twilight could be a real help."

"I see your point of view and I think the soldiers could use some time off, even though they only had one battle. Also, I must rule Equestria too, and since there are a lot of administrative things to be done, I find this a very good idea. I shall tell everyone" Celestia said.

Not many minutes later, my friends from Ponyville came inside. Pinkie was her excited self once again:

"OH MY GOD DANEL. I AM SO HAPPY THAT RAINBOW DASH IS NOT GONE. But, why are you so sad? I though you were happy" she said as she saw my face.

"I agree to you Pinkie. I am very happy she is not dead, but she won't wake up. That is why I called you here. I need you to look in a couple of magic books that I'll ask Twilight to bring from her library regarding evil curses and spells. I think that Dash has been cursed or something" I said. Twilight was back in a second and with the books and all of us started looking through.

**-2 days later, and no sleep on Daniels part-**

"I can't find enything" I said in desperation.

"Me neither" Twilight said.

"This has no sense. These books have more curses than any pony could learn in a billion years. And still, we can't find anything" Rarity said, her eyes almost closing because of how sleepy she was.

"Any success?" said Celestia as she teleported in the tent.

"No. I found nothing that could help Dash, and her condition didn't change much in these 2 days" I said sad.

All of us stood in a circle and had very sad faces. It seemed like all hope was lost and there was nothing in Equestria that could help Dash. Unless... My entire face just lightened up and everybody looked at me.

"Is something lost?" Celestia asked.

"Besides Dash, no, but I think I might know where to find the answer to our problem" I said.

"Where could you find such an answer?"Twilight asked.

"The Mountain of a Thousand Sorrows" I said.

"You don't really plan to go to that cloaked pony and ask for his help, do you?" Rarity asked.

"Given the situation, he is my last hope of bringing Dash back to her old self" I said. "I'll be leaving at dawn. Celestia, if I remember well, that mountain is deep inside the forest where we are now and I presume I can't just teleport there" I said towards Celestia.

"Yes and yes. But, the Mountain of a Thousand Sorrows is a dangerous palce. Be carefull" she said.

"Well, have a good night sleep then. You'll be needing ya strength tomorrow" Apple Jack said as she and everybody else left the tent. I just took one of the beds and put it just besides Dash so that I could keep a close watch on her.

**-In the morning-**

At the first ray of the sun, I was up and ready to go. I went to Shining Armor to tell him where I am going and to Celestia, to also tell her I was leaving and to ask her to watch Dash for me and inform me using the necklace, if anything was wrong. And then I summoned my wings and flew towards the forest at an acceptable speed. I had to remain well rested in case of any fights. As I flew, I felt that the athmosphere was depressing. And it became even more so. No wonder it was called the Mountain of a Thousand Sorrows. Everything that was here was just depressing. Burnt trees, smashed rocks and animal skins. And not a single soul except me. Not even animals. I flew for a good part of the day. Man, the forest was big. At the sunset I could see the mountain, but it would take me another day to fly. I decided to land in one of the burnt trees and summon my bow just in case someone would sneak on me. And I fell asleep, with only one thing in my mind. Dash.

The morning was even more depressing then the day before. But the Mountain seemed closer, so I kept flying. At the middle of the day I finally reached the bottom of the mountain. I thought back to the little piece of poetry the cloaked pony said, and I remebered that I had to speak my name:

"My name is Daniel Zerk, one of the Knight of Truth."

Nothing happened. Maybe something was not right. I tried again:

"My name is Daniel Zerk, the human in the prophecy and also one of the Knights of Truth."

This time, a small opening appeared at the base of the mountain and a pony all black, with blue eyes and some strange outlines on his body, face and wings came out. I saw that his cutie mark was a tornado with a lightning cutting through it. He also had a horn, so I supposed he was an alicorn. He had a necklace around his neck, but his had an eclipse on it.

"Daniel, we finally meet" the strange pony said.

"You are the cloaked pony, right?" Daniel asked wondering why was he not speaking in riddles as last time and why wasn't he wearing a cloak.

"Yes I am. You are probably wondering why am I not talking in riddles or wearing a cloak" he said.

"How did you?" I asked.

"I get that a lot really. The riddle part is only for the impression and the cloak...it's warm today, so no need for it. Why don't you come in?" he said as he stared walking back inside. I followed him. The door closed behind us and torches lit across the walls.

"Wow" I said as I looked around. It was a big stone room with a nice bookshelf in a corner, a big cauldron in the middle of it, some training dummies in another corner, a lot of talismans and tapestry on the walls and a small bed in the last and darkest corner.

"It's not much, but it is mine/ Now, I think proper introduction is in order, but before this, a cup of tea? I don't get that much company here, in the middle of nowhere" he said.

"Yes thank you. Two sugar cubes" I added. After he brought me the tea and got himself a cup he said:

"As I was saying, proper introduction is in order. My name is John Night. I am one of the seven pony wizards that are still alive, and the only one that is so close to Equestria. I alreadt know who you are, but I want to know why are you here? I know I told you to come when everything seems without hope, but what happened?" he asked very curious.

"Well John, as you said, the war started. I managed to train 40,000 ponies in 4 days for war. The first battle was a win somehow for us, but in it, my marefriend, Rainbow Dash got hit by one of Morbidus curses..." I begun.

"Daniel, you must understand that I can't bring the loved ones back from the grave" John said with a stern face.

"She is not dead" I said.

"Then it wasn't Morbidus's curse" John said.

"It was. He said so himself. The truth is, she was dead for a day and a half, but at the funerals, while I was just beside her and crying, I heard a hearthbeat" I said. John's cup fell from his hoof.

"You what?" he said, making sure he heard well.

"I heard a hearthbeat. It was hers. I took her back to the medical tent and healed her. She seems fine physically, but she won't wake up" I said.

John just got up and brought his face to an inch from mine.

"Are you telling the truth?" he asked very stern.

"Yes, why would I lie?" I asked confused. He sat back into his chair and said:

"I can't believe it. A case of dragon and love magic. I've never seen such a thing together before."

"Wait wait wait...what?" I asked, now completelly confused and surprised by his smile.

"Let me explain everything. You, my dear friend, are a dragon-born. That is why you could pull off things like Knight training in a week and training 40,000 ponies in 4 days, or like a 10 meter barrier. You have more magic than everyone in Equestria. Even me or the seven of pony wizards together, but only in your dragon form. Now, the magic of love. The magic of love is a secret kept between the high magicians of the pony and human world. Yes, there are other humans that know about the pony world, but can't travel to it. This is the only known kind of magic that can defeat the dark magic. I myself use the dark magic, because it is more powerfull than the magic of friendship. But, as you can observe, it is not the tool that is important, but the wielder. Now, as I was saying, the love magic is a secret. So that meand that Morbidus has no idea about it. Basically, you have the upper had here. As for saving Dash, tears of a dragon, or a dragon-born have healing and magical powers. Combine that with the magic of love, and you can ressurect your loved one. But, there is a cathch here too. The magic of love can only be used on the loved one to heal and help them and on their biggest enemy to harm him. At the moment, Rainbow Dash's biggest enemy is Morbidus, so you can use this magic on him. Questions so far?" He asked after his rather long explanation.

"Yeah, got a couple. If the my tears have healing powers and I somehow combined that with the magic of love, why didn't it broke the curse? Also, why am I here?" I asked.

"That is becasue the curse is a rather tricky one. If you described the curse correctly, it means that you will have to kill Morbidus so the curse can break. As for the second question, you are here to get the means to do that" John said with a smile.

"And what would this means be?" I asked interested and happy that I found a way to save Dash.

"You will have to learn you dragon transformation and dragon flying and fire breathing. Now, I am surprised you didn't ask me more about dragons and how come you are a dragon-born" John said.

"Well, I was going to, but you were faster. Please start with how in the name of God am I a dragon-born" I said.

"It is rather simple. As you might expect, a dragon-born is only born by a dragon" John said.

"So are you telling me my mother is a dragon in disguise?" I asked.

"I wasn't quite finished with my explanation. As I was saying, a dragon-born is only born by a dragon, another dragon-born or a relative of a dragon-born, that is not a dragon-born. Now, I know for sure that noen of your parents are dragon-born. But, if my research is right, you grand-father, the one that has gone missing early in his life, was a dragon-born, that was killed in a battle with an evil human magician, that now is dead" John said.

"I am surprised you know so much about my familly. However, please continue with more information about dragons" I said.

"Dragons. There has been only one dragon that we know of, and you are wearing a piece of him around your neck. No one knows his name. You have however to understand something. This dragons are far different than Spike, your friend. These dragos, and dragon-borns, can change from dragon form to human form whenever they want, they have wings, they breath fire, are far more intelligent and cunning than other creatures, usually finding a solution to a very difficult situation. Also, they might have visions and they are very skilled in both mind defense and offense. That is all I know about dragons... but I am sure there are more things that dragon-borns know or discover and never share because these informations are strictly forbiden. So, if you ever find something out that you don't know where you know it, don't tell it to anyone. It is a genetic herritage and should be treated with respect" John said.

"That is interesting and a lot of information to take into consideration. One last question: when do we start?" I asked, eager to get done with this war and spend more time with Dash, once she recovers.

"We could start right now. I heard you are a great mind fighter. I am great one too, or so I have been told. Prepare your defense and let's fight" John said as he calmly sat in his chair, focusing.

I quickly got my defense ready. This time, instead of one trap, I set two:one that he will dodge when he will break my defense, and one that will start right after the first and is impossible to dodge. I also prepared an emergency barrier, that was very strong but transparent.

"I am ready" I said. In the next second I felt a force greater than the one of Gladir and the other Knights combined. I was glad I put an emergency barrier and two traps. As I expected, he dodged my first one, but went straight into the second. That gave me access to his mind, I said nothing and let him wonder through the trap. I heard him say:

"This was easy. I expected you to put up more of a fight." Then I sprung the trap. The light around him became dark as a message appeared above him: Everything is false. The mind you are into is a fake. Look back into yours. His expression was priceless. His jaw dropped so much that I thought it would hit the floor. I let him retreat and we boh returned to reality.

"It is the first time I had been beaten at my own game. I never thought of a trap within a trap. Such a mistake from me" John said chucklying. "You, Daniel can teach me a few things. Great job. Now that my evaluation of you is far more accurate than in the biginning, we can start the next step of our training, but tomorrow" John said.

"Why tomorrow?" I asked.

"Well, you might have the stamina of a young dragon, but I don't, and this little game of ours, plus a couple of rather difficult spells I did today, before you came here, took their toll. I need to rest. I'll let you know when the training will begin. Let me just..." he said, as he made a bed appear in th center of the room. "That's where you will be sleeping. I wish you a good night" John said as he got up from the chair he was in and went straight to bed and fell asleep. I just went in the other bed and fell asleep as well. I dreamed of Dash and, after a while, I went in the sanctuary to meditate and find a strategy for the mission I had in my mind to kill Morbidus.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you did, a review is always welcomed.**

**Song reffered in this chapter is "Path of glory" by Blind Guardian.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Hi there. This is the next chapter, just for you. Hope you will enjoy :D**

Chapter 17 : Riders of the storm

A sun ray hit my face and I opened my eyes. I was confused because I was in a cave, but somehow a ray of the sun hit my face. Anyway, while sleeping I meditated in my mind sanctuary. My meditation led me to the conclusion of a plan that was risky, but if it would be a success, than Dash would be saved and the war would be over. If...

I looked around myself in this dark room where I was. Everything was exactly as I last seen the evening before, except John. John was nowhere to be seen.

"John! John, are you here?" I called looking around me and at the entrance of this room. I could see the table where we had our little mind game last evening and saw a note on the table: Gone to get breakfast, will be back soon. Please don't touch anything. You can practice your sparring skills in the training area. We will be sparring later.

I just shrugged and went to the corner of the training dummies and summoned my sword. The dummies turned towards me and started attacking. I didn't expect that to happen. But he was a magician after all. Anyway, I started fighting the dummies. They became more and more skilled and their attacks more powerfull, as I started fighting harder. After a rather long amount of time, John came back and found me fighting:

"I see that the dummies are pushed to their limits. You are quite skilled with the blade right now. We will see if you do the same in dragon form. Dummies, Stop."

The dummies stopped and I caught my breath for a second before I said:

"And what makes you think I won't be so skilled in a dragon form?"

"Because it is hard to fight with a tail as long as your body" John said with a big grin as my face almost fell. I never thought about that.

"Well, I suppose it can't be that hard" I said eager to learn.

"We will see. Let's have some breakfast and then we will train. I'll teach you about dragon form" John said as we sat at the table. We ate some kind of roots and moss.

"What food is this? I never ate this before" I said, as I tasted the moss. IT tasted like you would expect: mossy and wet.

"That is a special kind of plant. I always like to have some around. It is a good source of energy. Usefull in battle" John explained. The fact that after eating the moss, I no longer felt fatigued from the fight with the dummies. We ate in silence, and when we were done, he continued:

"Okay. Let me explain a couple of things: first, this training won't be as easy as the other one and second, we will have to share a mental link from now on, so, please open your mind."

We created the bond, sharing every memory, and he looked at me with a pittiful face:

"Damn. You love her that much?"

"Yes. But what about you? And that misterious alicorn?" I asked curious.

"Private. Look, you must understand a thing. You might not be able to save her" John said with a sad face.

"Oh, I will. Nothing will stop me" I said with a smile.

"It won't be easy" he added.

"Man. You saw my life. What has ever been easy for me? Besides, if it weren't easy, than it wouldn't have been fun and challenging" I added with confidence.

"I really hope you will succed. Now, let us begin" He said as the room became suddenly black and then very bright and we were somewhere under the sun.

"Where are we?" I asked confused.

"Not where, but when. We are in Medieval Age" John said.

"On Earth? Why the hell are we here and now? You do know that we can be killed for sorcery" I said a little concerned and looking around.

"You never asked yourself from where do the legends of dragons come? This is the place where and when dragon-borns are trained. So, let's begin" John said as he begun chanting something in a strange language. From around him a barrier formed and he made it very big and wide.

"This will protect us from strange eyes. If someone touches the barrier, they will return where they forgot something. Now, listen carefully because I will only tell you once. Since I am not a dragon-born myself, I can't tell from experience, I can only tell you what I know. First of all, to unlock your power as a dragon, you need the dragon form, or in other words, you need to morph completelly, not only wings. The magic of Equestria can unlock your wings as Merlin did, but the rest you will have to do by yourself. Clear?" he said.

"Okay. What next?" I asked.

"Morph your wings. After that, as I am sure you know, you must use your imagination. You must imagine your body become a dragon body. Not so hard. The tricky part is finding your true dragon form, because you might imagine it in a way, but you won't morph if it isn't your true dragon form. And that is done through meditation. Please begin" John said.

I began meditating and went through several images in my brain of a dragon form. First, ithad to be blue, because the wing were blue.

"You skin began turning blue. You are on the good path" John said as he was watching me.

I started with the members. Because I was of average height, I imagined my dragon legs like normal ones for a dragon, only that my dragon form should be standing like a human. And the claws shouldn't be very big, and three in number.

"Your feets are changing. Good" John said.

I tried the tail next. As long as my body. Blue. With a couple of spikes at the end. This time I felt my tail growing. It felt strange. I could move it naturally. It felt like a third hand and I used it on instinct.

I went for the torso and hands then. Then hands whould be slim but powerfull, and the chest scalled and light blue and not very muscular.

"Your upper body began to change. Is good. Go on" John added.

I felt strange now that I only had the head. First, the hair had to go. And then I needed a snout, like a foot long and kind of square-ish. And a couple of horns, dark blue, and not very long.

"Almost there. Give your mind a minute to adjust" John said as my dragon form was complete.

Suddenly, my mind began being flooded with power. I felt the magic in every living cell that was around me. Also, my hearing, smell and mental state were much more precise. I opened my eyes. I could see better than before, but with a little blue-ish hue. Also I had a bifurcated tongue that slippeed in and out of my mouth, as I tasted the air. And I felt a burning sensation in my chest.

"What is that burning?" I asked as I patted my chest.

"That is the Core. The very hearth of the dragon-form. The one that produces the fire you can breath. Also, I am surprised that you can move your tail so well" John said as he walked around me, watching me very carefully.

"It felt natural to me" I said as I moved it around.

"I want to test something. Summon your sword in three exemplars" John said as he got out a dagger. "Now, hold one in each hand, and one with the tail. Okay. Now, let's dance!" He cried as he started attacking me. I defended myself with both my hands, not losing the ability of sword fighting. Suddenly, John appeared behind my back and tried to stab me. I blocked it with my tail, from instinct.

"I always wondered. I got my answer now. It looks that the tail is moved from reflex like a third hand. Interesting" John said as he began attacking faster and faster and I was forced to defend almost three blows at once with different parts of my body. "Keep defending. When I tell you, start attacking" John said as he kept attacking. "Attack!" he said and so I did. I used both my hands and my tail, like I was born with all of them and have been using them since forever. I disarmed John and he said:

"Very nice. Nice indeed. I felt your own touch at these forms of sword fighting. Nice. Now, let's try some magic, shall we?" John said. "Do a barrier as big and powerfull as you can, for as long as you can."

I did. I did an instant barrier of ten meters. And it grew. And grew. One hndred meters. And it grew. I couldn't maintain a barrier as strong as possible after 150 meters, so I said:

"150 at maximum power. That is all I can."

"Let's test it. I named this move lighting hurricane of darkness, but it won't be full power, until I am sure I won't kill you" John said as he began floating up un a gust of wind and in the middle of a dark sky. And lightnings began hitting the barrier and tornadoes began absorbing it's power, as the high temperatures of said storm heated it. I struggled a little, but I managed to hold it.

"Increase the power" I said.

And damn he did. IT was becoming harder and harder. I almost failed a couple of times, but he stopped and landed.

"Not bad. Not bad at all. But that was only half of my power. BUt for a 150 meter barrier, you did it very well indeed. BUt you can increase your power even more. Only thing you have to do is use the energy around you. There is a cost however. Anything that you use energy from might die, depending on the quntity of energy you use. Don't do this, unless it is the last resort. Now, let's teach you how to breath fire" John said as sat down, a little winded from the spell before.

"John, I need to ask you something. This hurricane. At maximum power kills you too, doesn't it?" I asked. His face grew sad and very scarred and old.

"Yes...it does. I have never been in a situation to use it at full power, and I hope I'll never be. Now, for breathing fire, all you need to do is focus and let it go. But not towards me. That fire is as hot as the sun. Don't melt me" he said chuckling.

I did and some smoke came out, but nothing more.

"There's no smoke without fire. Try again" John said.

I did and this time some sparks came out.

"AGAIN!" John said in a motivating and commanding voice. I did, and this time some flames came out.

"Again" he said calmer and I tried again. Each time, more and more flamse came out, bbut never a continuous stream. We did this for several hours. Nothing more today.

"Try again. Then we will try flying. You'll have to use your tail to maneuver now, so it will be interesting" John said. I practiced some flying and some aerobatics, but with not too much success.

"Let's fight now. Use all you have and so will I" JOhn said. And so we did.

This was our routine for a week. In the meantime, the army of ponies stood where they were. Lord Morbidus was preparing his next army, and he started marching it towards Equestria. Again. Rainbow Dash's condition was the same and the special Corp stood by her tent 24/7.

In this week, I managed to learn how to breath fire and maintain the said stream, also how to direct it with my tongue, I managed to improve my barrier skills, doubling them, I learned that the tail has much more uses that I imagined and also some tricks in combat and defensive maneuvers in air. NOt a single wind of gust excaped my attention. I, as well as John, were now masters of the sky, he using his magic and I my wings. But after this week I was completely exausted.

"Okay. I think you are ready. Be careful though. Lord Morbidus is a tricky one. If you need help, I'll come. But, if I may ask, why do you want to infiltrate his fortress instead of crushing it to the ground?" John asked confused.

"Because Princess Luna is kept captive inside" I said with a sad and determined face. I looked at JOhn's face as it begun contorting and a mad snarl appeared on his face. He then said in a maniacal voice:

"Oh, that bastard. Forget what I said earlier. Let's go. I'll be coming with you. And excuse my maddening and somewhat creepy face, but lonelyness does this to you. Let's move it" John said, returning to his old self. I was surprised and it took me only a couple of seconds to add two and two. I said in a not surprised but sad voice:

"I guess this quest has become yours as much as mine. She is the alicorn in the memory, right?"

"I'm not surprised you figured this out. After all, you have the mind of a dragon. Yes, she is" he said as everything turned black around us and we were back in the so called den of his. I went back to human form and we started towards the camp. Now the hard part was going to begin.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you did, a review will be very much welcomed.**

**The song referred in this chapter is "Riders of the storm" by Hammerfall.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hey guys. I know it has been a long time since my last update. I wrote this chapter some time ago ( a couple of days ) but to be honest, I felt like it was missing something, so I left it to "bake" until I was sure it was good enough. Also, if you were wondering, Rio 2 was a pretty great movie. I liked the first one more, but this had a certain something that made it fun and interesting. It was also a very "subtle" comercial regarding football and the Rio hosting the next World Cup (or was it Champions League? doesn't matter). Anyway, enough rambling. Enjoy :D**

Chapter 18 - Flash of the blade

We walked through the forest, that was as dead as the first time I saw it. This forest intrigued me somehow.

"John. Why is this forest dead?" I asked curiosity taking over.

"Because this is the forest I used to train my magic" he said in a sad voice.

"You mean the hurricane?" I pursued the matter.

"Yes. This is what it does to normal land. Don't misunderstand me. I am not an evil pony wizard. Nor am I a good one. I am just protecting myself and those I care about using the power of darkness" he explained.

"I see. I suppose that all that makes us different is the fact that I use the light and you the dark. In rest, our goals are the same" I added with a smile.

"Well said. I now see why they made you Knight of Truth. You are wise for such an young age" he said turning to me. But something was not right. I could feel it. In an instant I was in dragon form.

"Daniel, is something wrong?" John asked looking around worried.

"I smell them. Lord Morbidus's forces. They are coming this way" I said as I pointed my nose towards south.

"That's not good. We should hurry" John said.

"Hop on my back. I'll fly us faster" I said worried for the pony army.

"You know that for a pony to ride a dragon is a great honor" he asked.

"Yeah yeah. Jump already" I said hastyly.

He jumped and I took to the skies, before stopping and floating.

"Is something wrong?" John asked again.

"What about your house?" I asked.

" Don't worry. It exists in rift, a point between two dimensions. They won't find it" John assured me. I flew faster, wanting to reach the camp sooner. In a couple of hours, we were out of the dead forest and nearing the clearing where I almost buried Dash. We had to make a detour, but we soon landed in the middle of the pony camp. Celestia was there, standing on guard, ready to attack us.

"Who are you and what do you want?" she asked.

I morphed back in human form and said:

"It's just me and the hooded pony. His name is John Night. But that is not important now" I answered her before turning towards the other ponies in the army.

"Everyone to arms. The enemy is approaching from the south. Be ready, and announce me when they are visible. I'll be in the Command Tent. And someone send the Special Ops there. Dismissed" I said and all the ponies hurried around, readying themselves for battle.

"So, you are John Night. What brings you to our camp?" Celestia asked.

"I am afraid it is personal, but I'll be helping Daniel in saving his love and winning this cursed war" John responded with a smile.

"So, you have found a way of breaking that spell?" Celestia asked me.

"I did, but it won't be easy. I'll tell you more about it in the tent, after the Special Ops have joined us" I said. Celestia nodded and we went out of the earshot of the other ponies, inside the tent.

"Celestia tell me. How has Dash been doing while I was absent? And the army?" I asked.

"Rainbow Dash's condition hadn't modified at all. As for the army, they lost their moral a little, because Shining Armor kept them training. But I think your dragon apparition restored it" Celestia answered with a smile. Just then, the Special Ops Corps entered the tent.

"We left Spike at Dash's tent" Twilight said.

"Very well. We will be explaining it on the way then. Celestia, I have a plan to end this war and to bring Dash back" I said. Everyone became serious at this point and I went on. "We will kill Morbidus. It is the only way to bring Dash back and end the war." Everyone was silent and waited for me to go on. "Celestia, do we know where the enemy main base is?" I asked.

"Yes. Shining Armor managed a solo mission and we found out that it is a couple of days walking north from where we are now" she answered.

"Great. Here is the plan: Me, John and the Special Ops Corps will form an unit. This unit will join the main army that will advance towards the enemy citadel. After they attack us, we will all make a tactical retreat back to this point, where an ambush will be waiting for them. In the middle of battle, my unit will go behind enemy lines. Since their army will be focusing on the main army, we will have a free route. Mostly. We will infiltrate the citadel and take out or make the goblin mages that control this monsters. They will submit most likely, because the goblin rider I met at the beginning of the war said they were forced to fight. After this, The Special Ops Corps will place gunpowder from the fireworks in key points of the building. that will help bring the citadel down. I'll entrust this to your expertise Apple Jack, since you know your way around strong points of a building. Just be careful with the timing. In the meantime, John here will free Princess Luna and take her to safety. And I will kill Lord Morbidus" I said and then waited for their opinions.

"It sounds like a well-planed idea" John said thoughtful.

"I will entrust this to you, Daniel, since I am in the first real war" Celestia said.

"I say this is our best chance" Twilight said. Everyone seemed to agree, so I added:

"Please explain the plan to Spike too. We will be putting it in action in forty-eight hours, so that we can have the gunpowder ready. The only thing I haven't figured out is how we transport it. The citadel is big and we will need a lot" I said a little concerned. I didn't even finish the plan and it was already leaking.

"Not really, sugar cube. The building might be big, but I can put the bombs so that it falls because of its weight. I only need about eight kilos of powder in sixteen packs" Apple Jack said with a smile.

"Okay. This can be carried in backpacks. No problem now" Pinkie said.

"Yeah, but we need to be careful with the detonation" added Rarity.

"Leave it to me. I'll time it at the second. After all, that's how I wake up animals in spring" Fluttershy said with a small smile.

"With gunpowder?" John asked amused.

"No silly. By timing their sleep at second" Fluttershy said her smile growing.

"Okay. The plan is ready. Now we need to get ready. Dismissed until the day of the fight. Celestia, make sure everyone knows the plan and let Shining Armor take care of the ambush and the troops that will make up the main force" I said before turning to leave the tent. I stopped and said:

"And please send someone to escort John to my tent. It is now his. I'll be in Dash's tent if anyone needs me" and then I went out.

"Man, what got into him?" asked Pinkie.

"You would be surprised what hope and true love can do. He will move mountains even if it killed him to save his love. And I believe he will be able to do just that" John said with a smile.

I went inside Dash's tent after I sent Spike to Celestia's tent to find out the plan. She was still there, as I left her. Unmoved, untouched and barely breathing. I sat down on a chair and concentrated really hard on our connection. I imagined myself at the point in the bridge where that connection barely existed. I said slowly:

"Hey Dashie. How are you? I...I miss you" was all I could say before tears hit my eyes.

"AND. I. WILL. SAVE. YOU!" I cried with all my powers, before I turned back to reality. Tears were still flowing from my eyes as I just stood there, caressing her beautiful rainbow hair. My thoughts flew back to our happy moments from Ponyville and the castle in Canterlot. 'And out pine up in the forest' I thought with a teary smile.

"I swear I'll save you Dash. And then we will be together forever" I said putting my head on her chest.

"It is not good to deal in extremes, my friend" John said from behind me.

"How long have you been there?" I asked, not getting up.

"Enough to hear the last part. But please consider my advice. Never deal in extremes. I've seen others and they didn't end well" John answered putting a friendly hoof on my back.

"I know. Only, I miss her too much" I answered, not being mad at him.

"I know you do. Every cell of your being screams that. But there is only one thing you can do and that is defeat Lord Morbidus. Now go get some sleep. You need to conserve your energy for when you'll face him" John said and he made a bed appear as he did in the cave. "And I know you won't leave this tent without a fight so I brought your sleep here" he added with a smile.

"Thanks" I said as I lied down and fell asleep almost instantly because of the tiredness and pent up tension from the last week.

"Just relax. You will feel better" John said as he went back to his tent.

My sleep was dreamless and I soon woke up to John shaking my shoulder.

"Wha...what's happening?" I asked sleepy.

"The army that was pursuing us yesterday has been sighted" John said calmly

"What time is it?" I asked unsure of how much I slept.

"It's almost midnight" John said.

"How far away are they?" I asked.

"A mile at least. Why? What do you have in mind?" John asked.

"The two of us will take care of them. Our army needs their power and stamina. We will go silent and assassinate them" I said.

"Let's tell Celestia first" John said.

I used the link created by the necklace and told her my plan and she agreed.

"It's done. We have green light. But first, let's decide how we get there" I said.

"You use your camouflage and I'll teleport to you, once you are in. Make sure you enter the tent of the leader and just knock him out. We need information and he could be valuable. Now, go" John said as he stormed out of the tent, probably to get himself his daggers. I summoned my wings and camouflaged. I silently flew towards the enemy camp, making sure that I was invisible. I landed in the middle of a disorganized camp, where a big hut was. It was guarded, but I managed to slip past them. Once inside, I found the warlord of this rather small force. I knocked him out without a sound and waited. In a half a minute, John teleported in and out with the prisoner. He handed him to our guards and then came back.

"I take the left side of the camp, you take the right one" I said as we opened the door to the hut. We silently killed the two guards and John said one last thing with a wide grin:

"Happy hunting!" before he slipped past some other soldiers, killing them and dragging them away. I turned and smiled. Even though I hated killing, the only goblin here was the warlord which we captured. The rest were demons. 'Time to release some pressure' I thought as I began assassinating left and right. All they saw before dying was a flash of the blade as it cut their necks clean. In half an hour, the camp was clear, and no alarm was raised. Me and John dragged all the bodies to the center and set them on fire which was the signal of a mission accomplished, before teleporting back to our camp, in Celestia's tent.

"The camp is taken care of. Tomorrow, I will talk with the prisoner" I said before turning to leave. I wanted to get back to Rainbow Dash, since she was alone.

"I'll send someone to watch over Dash tomorrow morning, when you talk with the prisoner" Celestia said with a smile. I nodded and left. A couple of minutes later, John caught up with me and we walked together until we reach Dash's tent.

"Have a good night. One more thing before I leave. Why did you insist on getting the camp alone?" John asked me.

"To save the army an useless battle" I answered, not looking at him.

"You don't fool me. What were you looking for?" he asked. I looked left and right and then took him with me in the tent. We both sat there and I said:

"I was looking for the enemy commandoes. I have never fought them and wanted to see how they fight, but couldn't find any."

"And?" John asked, clearly expecting more.

"And I wanted to release some tension and rage" I said a little ashamed.

"Finally. Now that wasn't that hard, was it? Be careful my friend. A Knight of Truth should be sincere with himself and with the others. Remember that. And...you were saying something about commandoes?" John asked.

"Yeah. The goblin we captured in Canterlot told us about them. They are supposed to be very skilled" I said.

"I've never heard of them. We should be careful with these kind of soldiers. They are most likely building the personal guard of Lord Morbidus" John said thoughtful.

"Maybe. But, as you said, we better be careful. Anyway, I'll see you later. I really want to catch some sleep before talking with an angry goblin" I said.

"You're right. Sorry for keeping you up. Have an easy sleep" John said as he disappeared from the tent.

The morning was fast to come and I was woken up by Shining Armor.

"Hey there, big boy. Time to shine" he said with a smile.

"Morning to you too. What got into you?" I asked confused by his manner of talking.

"Oh, I was just joking Daniel" he said chuckling. "To release some tension and ease the mood" he added with a smile.

"Right. What is going on?" I asked with a smile as well.

"Well, you have a prisoner to talk to and I am here to guard Rainbow Dash" Shining Armor said, becoming serious.

"Got it. I'll be back soon" I said as I got up and walked slowly towards the tent in which the prisoner was held. Celestia and John were already waiting for me there. I nodded and we all went inside.

Inside, the goblin that I kidnapped yesterday was sitting on a bed, reading. As he saw us, he got up and bowed. All of us were surprised and I said:

"Good morning. My name is Daniel Zerk, Knight of Truth. This is John Night and this is our leader, Princess Celestia."

"Good morning, knight. I am known as Gorum the Wise. I see your shocked face. Even though we are goblins, that doesn't mean we are savages. I want to thank you for your hospitality. This prison is better than the life I lived and that I hope to be living after the war. I've heard a great deal about you, knight, and I formed an opinion of you. A good one. I think you would be a very good friend of the goblin race. Now, what can I do for you?" he asked sitting back on the bed and looking at all of us.

"I've met two of your race up until now, and both of them told me that they were forced to fight. Is that true?" I asked.

"It is" Gorum answered.

"And will your race surrender to avoid being killed?" I asked.

"They will" he answered.

"What can you tell me about the commandoes ?"I asked next.

"Not very much. Only that they make up His guard and that are very hard to kill. You must chop their heads of clean, but be careful of the blood. It is poisoned" he answered.

"Is there any other army coming?" I asked.

"Yes. They will be leaving the citadel in a day."

"Is it big?"

"Half of the first, but mostly untrained soldiers. He hadn't had enough time to train them."

"What positions do goblins have?"

"Mages and some soldiers. About half of this army is made of goblins. If the armies meet, knock them out by hitting their right ear."

"Celestia, please spread this news among the ponies and make sure that the goblins killed are as small in numbers as possible" I said.

"Of course" she said before leaving.

"Okay Gorum. Now the important questions. Have you been inside the citadel?"

"Yes. I helped build it, in fact."

"Where do they keep Princess Luna?"

"The dungeons. Guarded by goblins. They will release her if you give them this ring" Gorum said as he gave me a ring, which I passed to John.

"Okay. Last question. Where is Lord Morbidus and what weakness he has?"

"He is in the throne room, at the top floor. I know of no weakness" Gorum answered.

"Thank you for your help. You did a good deed. As soon as the war is finished, you will be released" I said bowing to him.

"I am the one who should thank you for ending this stupid war" Gorum said bowing and me and John left the tent. A few yards away, John asked me:

"You weren't joking when you said you would talk with the prisoner? You literally talked to him, without torture and any other means of persuasion?"

"Yes. He is as much a victim as all of us. We should have respect for him, even though he is our enemy" I said.

"You do know that you remind me of a really important human? Sir Arthur Pendragon thought the same. You are wise for your age" John said with a small smile.

"It has been my way of survival up until now, and from now on. Let's get something to eat. I am starving" I said before flashing him a smile as we started towards the kitchen tent of our camp.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. We are getting closer to the final battle. I hope I am good enough at describing battle scenes, so it is not a boring one ( heh heh heh ...). Anyway, don't forget to leave me your impressions and opinions in a review :D**

**The song for this one was " Flash of the blade" by Iron Maiden.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Big Easter Special! I hope you will enjoy this enormous chapter I made for you, guys and girls. Also, I wanted to let you know that we are approaching the end of this story. Only five or six chapters left, besides this one. Enjoy :D**

Chapter 19 - The Assassin

The food was good and we felt a little better, but we were still very nervous as to the success of the mission that we would start tomorrow. Just as we exited the tent, an unicorn came to me and said:

"Sir, the gunpowder has arrived."

"Good. Go find Apple Jack and send her to the weapon's tent to retrieve a large enough backpack. I'll go see the gunpowder" I said as he bowed and left.

"Man, you get a lot of respect around here" John observed as we walked together towards the place where the gunpowder was delivered.

"No, not really. It so happens that I saved that unicorn's life in the first battle, and healed his friend in the medical ward that evening" I answered chuckling.

"But still, he bowed to you and called you sir" John said as we reached the place where a couple of barrels of gunpowder were.

"I suppose so" I said, before approaching a pony that was guarding and asked: "This is the gunpowder delivery?"

"Yes sir."

"How long ago did it arrive?"

"Just this morning. It is the exact quantity the Princess said the missions need."

"I see. Thanks."

Just then, Apple Jack came from behind a tent with a rather large number of backpacks. Six to be exact.

"Why do you have so many backpacks?" I asked confused.

"Well, ya' weren't expecting me to carry all of them, were ya'?" she asked with a wide smile.

"I suppose not" I said. " So who gets to carry how much?" I asked.

"I'll carry 4 packs, and everyone else carries two, except Spike and your friend, John" she said.

"Sounds like a good idea. He could be our escort, to say so" I said, turning towards him.

"Okay. I'll be the escort" he said. We then began dividing the barrels of gunpowder into packs and setting the fuses. Since we weren't sure of how long the fuses had to be, we called Fluttershy to match the sizes and bring the additional fuse she would need, since the bombs needed to be tied together to take effect. After several hours of work, the gunpowder was finally portioned and the backpacks were ready.

"Okay. I'll get the backpacks at the point we will hide tomorrow. We can't let the enemy see them if we want an easy fight" John said lifting all of them with magic and teleporting somewhere. In ten minutes, he was back and said with a grin: " No one besides me will find them. Now, get a good night sleep, because we have a battle waiting for us tomorrow."

"Right" the Special Ops corp said and they left to get ready for tomorrow. In less than a minute, only me, John and the guard were left in that area.

"Hey John! How about a spar?" I asked.

"I could use a sparring" he said as he drew his dagger.

"You mind me sparring in the dragon form?" I asked.

"Not at all" he said, taking out another dagger. I morphed in a second, and looked towards the guard, whose face almost fell. " At ease, my friend. Enjoy the show" I told him and he nodded, put his sword down and sat looking like a child.

"Ready?" John asked as I summoned three SilveFangs and put one in my tail.

"Let's do this" I said getting into guard position, with the right clawed arm stretched forward above my head, the left one stretched in front of me, at shoulder level and the tail above them, ready to parry an attack from behind.

John smiled and disappeared for a second, before attacking from behind with a vertical slash. I parried it with my tail and brought my left arm around me, to hit him in the neck. He however was no longer there. The next two hits were simultaneous as I defended my left flank with my tail and my right flank with my arm. It was my turn to attack, as I faked a lunge with my left arm, only to knock one of his dagger with my right arm.

"Ah, another variation of your fighting style. Interesting. You are indeed full of surprises" John said throwing his other dagger and somehow making a black staff appear, before giving me a wicked smile and saying : "But so am I."

The blows that followed were twice as fast as before, as John used the both ends of the staff, managing to keep me in a defensive state. He, however lost his footing for a second and I seized that chance to jump and hold the swords parallel to my body, before spinning like mad for a couple of seconds, forcing him to defend himself from over sixty hits, before knocking his staff from his hands with my tail and pointing three sword tips at his neck, as I said:

"Let's call this a draw."

"Don't be foolish" he said smiling as his form dissolved in smoke and with a swift move of his hands, knocked all my swords. He then said:

"Now we can call this a draw."

"Very well" I said as he went to retrieve his daggers and I returned to my human form, making the swords disappear.

"Very impressive. I am honored to fight with you two" the guard said giving us a childish smile. We smiled back and John left to get some sleep, while I went to Celestia's tent. I needed to talk to her before we would leave tomorrow. I reached her tent in a couple of minutes and went inside. She was reading something, so I asked:

"Am I disturbing?"

"No. Of course not. What is it, Daniel?" she asked.

"I just wanted to make sure that everything was ready for tomorrow. The army knows what it has to do?

"Yes, and Shining Armor already left with the troops for the ambush" Celestia said.

"Good. John managed to hide the gunpowder somewhere form where we could take it and go undetected. One last thing I have to ask of you."

"Anything Daniel."

"I want you to guard Rainbow Dash until I return" I said.

"I will go to her tent tomorrow morning, after the army leaves, but I didn't get something... who will command the army after you and your team disappear?" Celestia asked.

"Shining Armor will. We won't disappear until the enemy is caught in the ambush and by that time, Shining Armor would have already joined the army that was the bait" I said with a smile.

"I see. It is actually a good trick. I'll tell the army here just in case I forgot to mention that" Celestia said as we both left her tent, me to go get some sleep and she to talk with the ponies that were here yet. I went inside Dash's tent, which now became our tent and laid in bed, waiting for sleep to get me. Only it didn't happen, so I decided to talk to one more friend before sleeping. I focused on the horn around my neck and soon, I was in the DreamScape and greeted by Gladir:

'Daniel! I haven't seen you in some time. What are the news?' he asked with a smile.

'Well, I found a way to save Rainbow Dash. The only problem is that I have to kill Lord Morbidus. And besides that, I have to save Luna and destroy his army.'

'It looks like you have your hands full. But how will you kill Lord Morbidus?'

'Well, we will bait his army away in an ambush and sneak behind his guards to plant gunpowder bombs in his citadel to bring it down' I said.

'That is a good plan of getting rid of the army, but how are you going to kill him? He is powerful, maybe too powerful' Gladir said concerned.

'I have a plan for that too. The fact that i trained with a pony wizard is a plus too.'

'A pony wizard? You mean that cloaked pony that came visit when you became a Knight? Who might that be?' Gladir asked.

'It is known as John Night' I said. Gladir's jaw dropped and he said:

'You mean the most famous pony wizard of all times that was supposed to die in an accident with a spell known as Lightning hurricane of Darkness?'

'I didn't know he was so famous. Yeah, with him. He will be the one that will free Luna, since he is in a situation similar with mine-'

'You mean he is Luna's secret lover?' Gladir asked.

'Yes. But you better keep your mouth shut this time, Merlin' I said using his real name to show him I was serious. 'As for the training with him, I learned that I am a dragon-born.'

'You are a Knight of Truth, a human in the pony Universe, and a dragon-born?' Gladir asked amused and very surprised. 'That explains why you were so good at magic. You had it in your blood.'

'Yes. And I learned my dragon form, as well as doing all the Knightly stuff in it' I said.

'How big is the barrier when you cast it instantly?' Merlin asked.

'Three hundred meters. And the deep healing spell is now instant as well' I added.

'Can I see your dragon form? I knew something was off the moment I saw your wings, but I didn't think you were a dragon-born' Gladir said with a smile. I morphed and then showed him some moves and magic.

'Now you have a real chance of beating that monster of a Lord. I wish you good luck, Daniel Zerk, Leader of the Knights of Truth and Dragon-born' Gladir said.

'Leader? You are making me Leader?' I asked shocked.

'Yes. You are obviously the most powerful of us all, both in mind and magic. The Order of the Guardians of Light must be represented by someone as powerful as you. Am I right, my fellow knights?' Gladir said as all the other Knights appeared to see my dragon form and to nod with approval and big smiles.

'I thank you all. I will defeat Lord Morbidus, for the Order, for the pony race and the goblin race, for Equestria and for Rainbow Dash. I will return with good news. Farewell' I said as I woke up from my meditation, only to find that I was meditating in the dragon form. I morphed back in my human form and fell asleep. I was however woken up by Celestia.

"Daniel. It is time" she said and I got up and summoned my sword, SilverFang. I didn't need the armor this time, since I was going to be in dragon form the whole battle, until we disappeared.

"I will end this, Celestia. You have my word that peace is the only thing that will follow this war" I said, before bowing and leaving. Outside, I met with John, who was wearing his cloak and his staff.

"Ready for the big battle?" he asked with a smile.

"Yeah. Let's go kick some ass" I said, and we left together to see how the army was doing. We met the army just outside the camp.

"Okay everyone, listen up. I want you all to form ranks as close together as you can. Don't worry about anything, I'll be putting up a barrier to protect us all. Pegassi, fly low. Special Ops corp, walk right behind me. Everyone is to have their bows ready" I said as I morphed in the dragon form and waited for them to get ready. When they were ready, I extended the barrier to cover us all, on about two hundred meters. We fit just right, because this was the small part of our army, the bigger one preparing the ambush. After being sure I could maintain it stable, I said:

"Okay, move out!" and we started marching towards the citadel, which was rather far. Our walking carried us through a small forest, which was full of ponies ready to attack from the trees.

"There is the tree where I have hidden our supplies" John said, as he pointed to a big oak, that looked like it was about to fall. We continued marching, no one attacking us. We walked for several hours, until John said:

"Here come the arrows! Get ready to fire!" I saw a black wave of arrows falling over us and getting repelled by the barrier. Then I saw the soldiers. The army was smaller than the first, but it was still really big. "FIRE!" I cried and a wave of arrows left the bows of our army as they hit and enraged the enemy army. The enemy begun charging all at once:

"Tactical Retreat!" I cried and we began falling back, while still shooting arrows from time to time as to not make then give up the chase. We soon neared the small forest. I pointed at a pegasus and said:

"Fly as fast as you can and tell Shining Armor to get ready. The mouse is about to reach the cheese under the box."

"Yes sir" and he flew away as fast as he could. When we entered the forest, I made the barrier disappear, and he heard a cry from the enemy army:

"Their shield is gone. They are dead meat now!" as they charged one more time and fallen right into our trap. The ponies from the trees begun falling and hitting every enemy , taking them by surprise.

"All goblins, throw your weapons and you won't be harmed!" I cried as loud as I could. In a second all of the goblins threw their swords and bows and kneeled, while the other beasts keep fighting.

"DON'T HARM THE GOBLINS!" I cried, before me and my team left the fight to get to the tree where John hid the backpacks. We reached the tree without much problem, I morphed back and we sat in a crouch position as to not be seen. John said in a whisper:

"All right. We made it this far. Here are the backpacks. From here we will have to be extra careful. Their whole army might be here, but there might be raiding groups."

We all took our backpack and I said:

"John, can you travel unseen?"

"I can form a white smoke ring just above you. They won't suspect a thing" he said as he drew his daggers and became a smoke ring that flew above us.

"I just hope you brought enough of that plant to last you for the entire mission" I said, looking towards the smoke ring. "Okay team. Let's move, but silently" I added in a whisper and we all began walking slowly out of the forest, avoiding soldiers and enemy scouts that were inside. After we were out and far enough to not be seen, we begun running, in order to move as fast as possible. When we reached the place where the enemy army waited for us, we found an enemy camp just like the one that we destroyed two nights before.

"John, what do you say? Clear it or go around?" I asked.

"I say we clear it" he said as he transformed back in a pony. I nodded and said:

"Take a small break. We will be back." Then I put my backpack down and made myself invisible. I sneaked in the camp and John teleported to my position. We then began silently clearing the camp as before. We only let alive the goblins, who we sent home or to our camp and to tell the guards that I sent them.

Half an hour later, we were back on the road, moving fast and silent. Around evening, we saw a big building in front of us. It had to be the citadel. And it was well guarded.

"Okay, John, you have any ideas?" I asked as we made another small break just outside the yard.

"Kill any commando we see?" he said.

"Of course, but I was talking about a way to get in undetected" I clarified.

"Well, we could do the camp maneuver once again" John said.

"I doubt it would work. They are commandoes" I said.

"What if we use coordinated attacks?" Pinkie said all of a sudden.

"That might work. But keep close. If this fails, John, we will have to create a diversion for them to plant the charges." I said.

We agreed on this plan and we silently got inside the yard. We only met patrols made of two or three, which we took out quickly. These commandoes weren't much. That is, until we got inside the citadel. The security there was outrageous. There were rows after rows of enemies.

"Right. Looks like we will have to go head on from here" I said.

"I agree, but let's be smart about this. Get their attention, and when they are close enough, roast them in a cone of flames" John said. I nodded, morphed into a dragon and walked out towards them. I saw them looking at me as one asked another one:

"What the hell is a dragon doing inside the citadel?! Get him!" And they all lined perfectly to get crispy. I smiled, inhaled and then brought hell over them. It was easy to clear the first floor.

"This is all I need. Me and the others will go set the bombs" Apple Jack said.

"Right. Don't light them until you see Luna outside of the citadel" I said. They nodded and left.

Me and John continued, until we reached a staircase. He said:

"I'll meet you outside. I have to get someone out first. Happy hunting!"

"Happy hunting to you too, brother!" I said as I went up the stairs, while he went down, towards the basement. As I reached the next floor, I realized that I couldn't any longer roast all the enemies to a crisp, because of the small halls. That meant I had to be extra careful. I became invisible and carefully took all the guards down, one by one, either with my sword or with an arrow. And I had to do so for the rest of all the halls and floors. Jumping from an enemy to the other and cutting their head off. All one thousand commandoes. I got bruised and had a few shallow cuts, because I couldn't get all of them at the same time and had to tire them before being able to kill them. But, I remembered that in my pocket, I had some more of that plant I ate in that morning in the cave. It was old and dry, but it did its job. And so I stood in front of the throne room. Before entering, I just told John one more thing through a mental connection:

'If I don't get out alive, please make sure Dash knows the entire story and is provided for. And tell her I thought about her in my final moments. Tell her I love her eternally.'

'Got it. But please come back alive. I hate to bring bad news to others' he said.

I smiled and then I stepped through the doors of the throne room. The room was very well lit and round. I could see a throne, that was big and ugly, but majestic in its own way. The room, however was empty.

"Daniel Zerk. We finally meet" a voice said from everywhere around me.

"Indeed. But it would be a proper meeting if you showed your face" I said, sheathing my sword and putting my hands behind my back.

"Of course. Where are my manners" the voice said and a small human being appeared from behind the throne.

"Lord Morbidus, I presume. You are a little shorter than I was expecting" I said giving him a respectable bow.

"Daniel Zerk. I suppose you are here to stop me" he said as he bowed.

"Yes, and much more. I am here to get the world rid of you" I said.

"And why would you do that? I only wish for peace, under my reign of course, but peace none the less" he said with a smile.

"Because you started a war and threatened not only the pony race, but also the goblin race" I said.

"These traitors betrayed me. Doesn't matter. Yes, indeed, I started something you call a war, but I see it more as a crusade for the purification of this world."

"Oh, please. Can't you see how many ponies and goblins you sent to their deaths?"

"A quest as mighty as mine asks for sacrifices" he said.

"You are not in your right mind. Plus, there is another reason I have to kill you" I said.

"Oh, and what might that be?" he asked pacing back and forth.

"To save my love, which you tried to murder."

"Oh, she can't be saved. She is already dead. In fact, she is dead since that day" he said.

"I wouldn't be so sure. She has a hearth beat and she breaths" I said, starting to pace as well.

"What!? That is impossible! This pony assured me she would die! How is she not dead?" he asked, stopping dead in his tracks.

"Your pony that assured you forgot to take something into consideration" I said, stopping as well and looking him dead in the eyes.

"And what might that be?" he asked, looking me in the eyes as well.

"Me" I said simply, a smile appearing on my face. In that moment, a vein almost popped in his temple, as he said with a forcefully controlled voice:

"I underestimated you. I won't do so again. Very well. Prepare young Squire of truth-"

"Leader of the order. If I address you as Lord, you address me with my proper title" I said becoming serious.

"Fair enough. Then, prepare Knight Leader, for when I'll strike you down, your beloved pony will die as well" he said as he got his sword out.

"Then it means I will have to strike you down first" I said, unsheathing my sword as well. He charged at me, and I charged at them.

**-Meanwhile, down in the dungeons-**

John quickly reached the bottom of the stairs. There were few guards, and all were goblins. They all grouped and asked:

"Who are you pony, and why are you here?"

"Your leader told me to show you this ring and you will know what to do" he said as he took out the ring and showed it to the goblins.

"Okay guys, it is the time to go home. Please excuse us, mister pony" the goblins said after they saw the ring and left the dungeon.

"Well, that was easy" John said as he began searching through the cells. It didn't take him long until he found Luna's cell.

"Hi there, Lulu. Long time, no see!" he said as he opened the door.

"Johny? Is that you?" she asked as he kneeled beside her.

"Well, who else?" he asked with a warm smile and she kissed him deeply. He, however, broke the kiss and said:

"First, we get you to safety, and then comes the good part." He helped her up and they got out of the door. They went up the stairs and in the main hallway, just before the entrance, a hooded figure waited for them. Just then, Daniel's thoughts got into his mind: 'If I don't get out alive, please make sure Dash knows the entire story and is provided for. And tell her I thought about her in my final moments. Tell her I love her eternally.' He smiled and responded

'Got it. But please come back alive. I hate to bring bad news to others.' Then, the hooded figure said:

"Master Johnathan. Long time, no see."

"Ludvic? What the hell are you doing here? I thought you became an assassin wizard. What in the name of all that is good are you doing here of all places?" John asked as he stopped dead in his tracks.

"I am sorry, my former master, but I can't let you get out. It is my job" Ludvic said.

"You? Your job? You work for Morbidus? Wait a second...you gave him that assassination spell that almost killed Daniel's love! You bastard!" John said, feeling the rage build up.

"Almost dead? So she survived? Looks like I still need to work on my magic" he said frowning.

"Luna, use that side door there. And you Ludvic, it is time we end this. I am sorry I am forced to do this, but you got yourself in this mess" John said as he got out his daggers, but not before eating some of that plant.

"I see you brought that moss with you today. Very well, because you will need it" Ludvic said as he drew his daggers.

**-Meanwhile, somewhere on the first floor-**

"Okay. This is the last charge. Are you sure all is set so it falls at the exact time" Twilight said as Apple Jack set the last charge, while Fluttershy put the fuse and tied it to the big one, which she already put outside.

"Yes. All should work just fine. After the fuse is lit, Daniel will have only a couple of minutes before the big boom" Fluttershy said.

"Okay. Let's get out of here and watch out for Princess Luna. After we get her to safety, Pinkie, you light the fuse" Rarity said.

"Right" Pinkie said, with a match box in her hoof. They left the backpacks there and ran outside and into the yard. Just then, Luna came out from a side door.

"Princess Luna! Over here!" Twilight said, as she saw her.

"Twilight. You have to help them" Luna said in a weak voice, as all of the Special ops corp grabbed her and carried her outside of the yard and some more distance away.

"Princess, we can't do that. They said they will be okay, plus we got our orders. Pinkie, light it up" said Spike as they set the Princess down.

Pinkie tried to lit a match. It broke. She tried another one. It lit but quickly went out. With the third one she was able to light the fuse.

"And now we wait and hope they are all okay" Twilight said as they waited for everyone to come out alive and for this stupid war to end.

**Aaaaaaaand here is the end for this Easter Special. I hope you all enjoyed and if you did, a review is highly appreciated. I'll see you soon. Also, I released a chapter in my Rio story (another Easter Special. YEEEEYY!) so check that out. I wish everyone a Happy Easter and may the Easter Bunny bring you what you want :D**

**The song for this chapter is "The Assassin" by Iron Maiden.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Hi guys and welcome back. I saw that you really liked the Easter special :D and I am so happy. This chapter is not very long, but it has its goal, and I think I hit it. Now, I want to ask something of you, so that you can feel the full extent of this chapter.**

**The song referred here is "Still worth fighting for" by My darkest hour. I strongly suggest that you listen to it while reading the chapter. I'll leave an indication when to start the song. Without further addo, please enjoy :D**

Chapter 20 : Still worth fighting for

"Charge!" Shining Armor yelled as he and the other ponies hit the enemy army. All the goblins were looking as the rest of the enemy army was decimated. They fell left and right. In a short time, all of the enemy army was dead, excluding the goblins.

"That was the last of them, sir!" a pony said as he went to report to Shining Armor.

"Good. Goblins, listen up! You will follow me to our camp. There, you will meet your leader, and with him, you will return home. This war is coming to a hasty end."

All goblins nodded, and, surrounded by ponies, started marching towards the camp of the pony army.

**-Meanwhile, in front of the citadel-**

"Umm, Fluttershy, how long is that fuse?" Spike asked again. He has already asked three of four times.

"2 Minutes long" she answered, not removing her stare from the door.

"Well, then, they have less than 30 seconds" Rarity said.

"Are you sure they are going to make it?" Luna asked, as she waited for John and Daniel to return.

"Don't worry, princess Luna. They will be back soon. And we have to throw a party for them" Pinkie said jumping up and down, like the army hasn't changed her a bit.

"Pinkie, keep it quiet. We are not done yet" Twilight said through her teeth.

"Oops. Sorry Twilight" she answered as she began waiting with the others, not moving her eyes from the door.

**-At the same time with the conversation outside-**

Clank! Clank! The two daggers that John used to fight with fell to the ground, broken.

"Tsk tsk tsk. You look like you lost your touch, my former master" Ludvic said with ragged breath, and daggers still in his hooves. He had several gashes on his face and legs and one big gash on his back. His coat was cut and ripped. In fact it was so thorn, that you could see his cutie mark. He had a couple of daggers crossing over a bottle of poison. His mane was messy and sweat was falling from his brow. John on the other hand, had a lot of cuts and bruises on his back and chest, and also a big gash on his left chin. His cloak was also ripped, but not so bad. However, he seemed to have injured his head, since his sweat had a reddish tint.

"Ludvic, Ludvic, Ludvic...still underestimating opponents, I see" John said as he made his staff appear and got into a ready chance. Just then, with the back of his eye, he saw the fuse burning somewhere behind Ludvic. 'I got to hurry' he thought, as he attacked. He used a couple of feints and he managed to drive Ludvic back a couple of meters. Ludvic took his guard position again, but you could clearly see on his face that he was out of energy. Even so, he attacked once again and John was forced to defend himself. However, experience made its presence felt, when Ludvic became unarmed and defenseless, because John managed a double strike to take both his daggers from him.

"Well, it looks like I am defeated. For now. But I will see you again, my former master, and next time, you will be the one that shall be defeated. For good" Ludvic said as he disappeared in a shadowy portal he created in the ground under him.. John let his staff fall. It disappeared after it hit the ground. HE took his daggers and put them inside his cloak. After that, he only managed to take a couple of breaths, before he remembered about the fuse. Just then, an explosion could be heard not far away from him. And then another one. And another one. And he was tired as hell and out of moss. He had to run. And run he did. 10 meters from the door. 5 meters. 1 meter. He grabbed the handle, and, using his body weight, he opened the door. The moment he left the building, the bottom floor exploded in flames, flying him several feet forwards. He barely managed to get up and drag his injured body towards where the Special Ops corp was. 'I...have...to...make...it. For Luna' John thought, as he was quickly loosing blood. He managed to reach the place and said in a barely whisper:

"I have made it. For you, Luna" before he fell down and fainted. Luna got up quickly, and with tears in her eyes, she began healing him, while the others provided her with strength.

"Don't die, Johny. Don't you dare die now!" Luna called as her tears continued to fall on him. From her magic, his wounds began to close. He opened his eyes and said:

"Don't be foolish. I'm not going to die. I am just tired and cut and bruised and have several wounds that would scar nicely."

"I see you haven't lost your morbid sense of humor. Johny, why did you stay and fight him? You could just have run with me" Luna said confused.

"Because of honor and nobility and-" John began saying.

"You don't fool me. You never believed in that" Luna said with a knowing smile, tears still falling as she kept healing him, while she herself became weaker by the second.

"Fine. I did it for you" John said defeated and trying to get up. However, Luna pushed him back down.

"Yeah, but why?" she asked again.

"Because you are worth it" he said with a grin. She smiled and kissed him. Just then, a shadow zoomed over them and towards the falling building.

"Umm, guys, what is that?" asked Apple Jack as she pointed her hoof at the ceiling of the tower that was now free-falling. From there, a column of light burst out for a couple of seconds, and then was gone. And a cyan flying figure was going straight for the tower.

"What in the name-" was all that the others managed to say, before the building fell.

"Umm, I don't want to be that pony, but where is Daniel?" Fluttershy asked as she suddenly remembered. Luna and John instantly broke the kiss, and John managed to say one thing:

"Oh no."

**-5 minutes earlier, at the top floor (you might wanna start the song right about now)-**

Lord Morbidus charged at me as I charged at him, both our swords flashing with power. We clashed and I managed to held my ground, after his attack almost broke my guard. He was powerful indeed. Also, the floor was quite slippery, so I had to be careful where I placed my footing as to not lose it.

"Quite impressive. However, that was only half of my power" Morbidus said grinning, and looking like he was relaxing a little. Out of nowhere, faster than an arrow, he ran towards me again, with his sword flashing and slashed at me. He was fast too. I had to cast an instant barrier and defend with my sword at the same time. He broke the barrier and hit the sword. It pushed me several feet back, but he merely managed to bruise me. Still, it was indeed impressive.

"Hmph. Not bad. That strike should have made at least a scratch on you. Instead it only left you a bruise. We will have to fix that" he said as he flared his red demon wings and lunged at me again.

"We will see" I said as I flared my blue dragon wings and beat them fast to push the air in front of me to slow his attack down. It served its purpose but his attack was still powerful and he scratched my arm.

"Now we're talking" he said as his grin grew. I lunged at him and in his surprise, I manage to scratch his arm too.

"Indeed, we are talking now" I said as I took my guard position again. His grin faded as he saw his blood dripping on the floor. I saw that blood vessel pulsing at his temple again. This couldn't be good.

We began trading blows, hitting each other and injuring each other. He managed to get through my guard and knock the sword out of my hand. I then felt a strong sting at my stomach. As I looked down, I saw that his blade was half through my stomach. I fell on my back and he walked over me, visibly happy that his trick went well. He kneeled beside me, sighed, and said:

"You fought bravely. In fact, I might say, you were the bravest of the Knights so far. But, as all the others before you, you failed. Any last words before you can join them in that small, gasty room, along with your girlfriend?"

I coghed up some blood and said:

"You disgust me, Morbidus. You underestimate me again."

"Underestimate you? You have no idea what to do and why you do it."

"I have every idea what and why" I said as I morphed in my dragon form. The force of my morphing sent him flying at the other end of the room. I got up. I stopped the bleeding with magic and said:

"I will defeat you. And that's not my destiny or in any prophecy. I choose to defeat you, even if it is the last thing I do."

"You talk big. You talk big indeed. But you still have no idea why" he snarled at me, getting up from the hole he made in the wall.

"Oh, I know why. For good and for love" I answered.

"Ah. Good and love. And honor. Such meaningless concepts. You may think that you are doing something good, but what is goodness than another side of power? You talk about love as if it was important to you, yet you led your so called loved one into battle to die for you" he said, walking back towards me and he began circling me.

"That was indeed my fault. I should not have let her lead the attack" I said sadly. He approached me face to face and said:

"See? You did many things that some would consider bad and others would consider good. Come, join me and let's rule together over this land." I promptly punched him in the face. He backed away some feet and asked:

"You should not have done that. That was a one-time offer. Why are you still fighting? For this land? For meaningless titles? For your love? Why?"

"Because all of this is still worth fighting for. As long as there is the smallest light in the darkness of this universe and as long as my hearth is still beating, I will not stop fighting to bring peace." Just then, I could feel the explosion from downstairs. I raised a barrier around us so he couldn't escape and I said:

"I don't need a sword to defeat you. I don't need power to defeat you. You know what that explosion means? It means the end of the war. Luna is free. The goblins are free. The ponies are free. You will die and Dash will recover. And you know why? Because I have something you don't. I have love. I receive and give others my love. You won't ever be able to understand that. And that is the reason you and your so called empire will fall. Darkness might win against light, but it never had and never will win against love." Then I attacked his mind. His defense was strong, but my motivation was stronger. I broke inside. I showed him what love meant, what friends meant, what companionship was and how honor worked.

"No. No. NO. NO. NO!NOOOOOOO!" he began screaming as he took his sword. I put the barrier down and prepared to receive the hit with open arms. I knew what I had to do. It was instinct. We clashed at full force. He went with his sword straight through my chest, yet I caught him in a hug.

"It's okay, Morbidus. I forgive you" I said. HIs face contorted in confusion. "This is the difference between you and me. I can forgive you for taking everything from me: my love, my life, my friends, but you, you will never be able to forgive me or forgive yourself. This is what love means" His face contorted in pain. I could see tears falling from his eyes as his entire being flashed in a beam of light that shot through the ceiling. They didn't look like tears of sadness. The look in his eyes was more like a relief. A relief after realising what had he done and that he had been forgiven for it.

"I have disappointed you, master, but I thank you, Daniel. I now see how wrong I was" he said as he vanished and was no more. Then silence. There I was in the falling tower, with a hole through my dragon chest, because the sword was gone as well. I fell in my knees and thought: 'I've done it. Dash, you are saved. And it only took me my life.' And then I fell on my back, with the face to the ceiling. Just then, I heard a wing flap and a shadow came over me. I turned my head and saw Rainbow Dash, looking at my chest with a shocked expression. I caught her eye and smiled at her. She smiled at me as tears began falling from her eyes. I said in a ragged voice:

"I love you, Dashie!"

"I love you too, Daniel!" she said before falling on her kneed before me, her body limp with sadness. I looked her in the eyes one more time and then, darkness.

**- In the tower(3rd person)-**

"Daniel? Daniel?! DANIEL!" Dash began crying, beating with her hooves on Daniel's chest.

"Why? why? why?!" she cried again, as her head fell forward on Daniel's wounded body.

**Aaaaaand scene! Well, I hope you enjoyed my final battle chapter :D However, we are not done yet. We have to see this love story to its end, else it wouldn't be a proper ending, now would it? Anyway, send me your opinions in a review or a pm. I really want to see how did I do.**

**Song referred at the beginning of the chapter. I hope you took into consideration my advice (for that added pleasure and feeling) .**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Hi everyone! Good to see you all again! Here is the newest chapter in this story, and a special chapter too. You will see what I mean in a couple of minutes, but before that, let me answer to a guest reviewer:**

**Thanks for reviewing. I am happy to hear that you like the story so much that you can't wait for the next chapter, but rest assured. I am writing as fast as I can, but is not always easy :D**

**Anyway, let's get on with the story then... Enjoy :D**

**Chapter 21 - Requiem for a dream**

**-roughly two weeks before the final battle ( Dash's POV for the entire chapter)-**

'I must hurry and get back into the battle. Celestia didn't receive the news of her sister being interrogated as we fight, too well. I have to get back and help Daniel' I thought as I flew quickly through the clouds. I usually enjoyed flying through clouds and would stay there for hours, but this time I had things to do. Suddenly, a flying red creature, that had red wings caught me by the neck. I tried to kick it with my legs and wings, I tried to call my sword and call for help by using the mental connection, but it was in vain. He was more powerful than I thought. And when it spoke, I knew exactly who he was:

"Well hello little ponies and Knight. I see you managed to thin the number of my army, but at what cost? You now have a little bit more than half of yours. I, however, have another army ready at the Citadel. Do you have another army ready, little Knight? Or do you plan to fight all my army just with your precious little girlfriend beside you?" And he glared at me. I could read the evilness in his eyes. "I say we make things a little more interesting. You will see what I mean in a couple of moments" he snarled, before he spoke in a whisper to me." What do you say of a permanent trip to the other side, little pegassuss?" and his hand flashed red and hit me with it over my chest, right where my hearth was. I felt a sudden pain and I lost almost all my energy. I couldn't maintain my connection to Daniel's mind, so I had to break it. The first couple of seconds I was confused, but then I realized what was going on and had little time to act on it. So I did exactly as Daniel told me. I teleported my dying body to the middle of the enemy army and I began singing the four verses Daniel told me to. I felt my body radiating with energy. Some colorful orbs began flying around me, forming a rainbow. 'Maybe Daniel did something' I began thinking, before looking around. Every one of them stopped fighting: the ponies, the goblins and the monsters, all of them began singing along. And then I saw Daniel walking slowly towards me. 'Ha! He fooled that stupid Morbidus. He must have' I thought, but then I saw his face. I saw tears in his eyes. I began crying too and then I heard him talking to me in a voice full of sorrow:

"Don't worry, Dash. I am here. I will help you. I will save you."

That is the moment I realized that if he ever tried to heal me to full heath, we will both die in the process, so I shook my head as a no. He now openly cried. Then I felt something. My mind was becoming numb and my body cold and sore. I was being pulled to darkness and my body began fading. I only heard him cry:

"Dash, don't go!"

And then, silence and darkness. I wasn't dead, nor was I alive. I was floating. Floating in darkness. I still had my memories and was still in control of my spirit. I then remembered Gladir. He was a ghost that lived in the red chamber. 'Maybe I would become a ghost. Then I would see Daniel again.' I floated for a long time in this dark place, waiting for something to happen. I felt neither hunger nor thirst and I waited. I think I have waited more than a decade, or so it seemed, but time must have been flowing differently.

Then I felt something. It felt like water drops hitting every part of my body. 'Rain!' I thought. But some of them felt different, heavier and concentrated on my chest. And I heard a voice:

"Hi there Dashie. I...I just want to tell you goodbye. I just want you to forgive me for not being able to protect you. I am sorry."

"No, don't be. You did your best and I love you" I said, but then realized he can't hear me. He continued:

"I wanted to do my best, but I failed you. I know you are a great prankster, so please do something, one last thing for me."

"Anything. I would do anything for you!" I said as loud as I could, tears beginning to form in my eyes.

"Fool me and Death and return to me. Please do this final miracle for me. Please Dashie, I won't be able to go on without you. Please..." he continued.

Tears began falling from my own eyes. Then something came through that darkness. Something made only of light. It resembled a giant, golden dragon head. It looked me dead in the eyes. It was something comforting about his gaze that reminded me of Daniel. He smiled a sad smile with teary eyes before closing its mouth around me and my spirit begun glowing again. The light broke through that deep darkness. It felt so much different than the first time when my body began glowing. I began feeling my limbs again but I couldn't move. At all. All I could do was breath.

"You're alive! Thank you, Dash. I don't know how you did it, but thank you" I heard Daniel mumbling. Then some other voices spoke. I could hear Celestia, Shining Armor, my friends from Ponyville, and another pony that, by his mode of speaking resembled a doctor. For a second then, I felt my body contracting and I knew I was being teleported.

I smiled and then focused as I felt my body healing. If I was alive, then I could connect my mind to Daniel's and thank him. Somehow, his tears and that dragon had were connected. I tried to but couldn't. Then I did something different that I learned from Gladir: imagining the connection as a road between two places. Palaces, in our case. I found myself in the middle of the road and walked along it until I reached the point where it was broken. There I saw Daniel. He was inspecting the damage.

"Daniel! Over here" I said loud, but he didn't hear me. 'Why wouldn't he look at me?' I thought confused. I tried moving forward but hit my head in an invisible wall.

"What in the name of-?" I mumbled as I went with my hoof around the wall, trying to find its end. It was a cage over my mind...a cage made of something I didn't recognize. 'An invisible barrier that keeps my mind locked and that makes me unable to talk with anyone using connections. Strange. Yet, he seems to be able to see my palace' I thought as I saw Daniel looking towards me and then leaving. Since I didn't have anything better to do, I sat down and waited. Daniel came several times and tried to do different things to the link to make it stable and usable. Then, at some point, he stopped coming. I still waited for him to come, but he didn't. My wait made me fall asleep and began dreaming. I saw Daniel becoming a dragon and working together with the cloaked pony. Then I woke up. 'Daniel must be searching for an answer to our problem, using the help that the cloaked pony had to offer' I thought as I saw him fighting. The next thing I knew, was that at some point I woke from my meditation and I felt my body strong and healthy, but I couldn't move still. So I just stood there and waited. For what, I did not know, but I felt like I had to wait.

Then I heard Daniel's voice again, speaking to me, both in real world and in my mind, though I couldn't respond:

"Hey Dashie. How are you? I...I miss you." 'I miss you too' I though, becoming sad.  
>"AND. I. WILL. SAVE. YOU!" That feral tone in his voice scared me, so I figured that he was in dragon form. I calmed myself mentally.<p>

'I know you will' I though with a mental smile.

"I swear I'll save you Dash. And then we will be together forever" he mumbled.

"It is not good to deal in extremes, my friend" I heard another pony said.

"How long have you been there?" Daniel asked.

"Enough to hear the last part. But please consider my advice. Never deal in extremes. I've seen others and they didn't end well" the other pony said.

"I know. Only, I miss her too much" I heard Daniel say.

"I know you do. Every cell of your being screams that. But there is only one thing you can do and that is defeat Lord Morbidus. Now go get some sleep. You need to conserve your energy for when you'll face him. And I know you won't leave this tent without a fight so I brought your sleep here" the other pony said.

"Thanks" Daniel said and he fell asleep instantly. I could hear his snoring. 'I wish so much I could be there for you, Daniel' I thought.

"Just relax. You will feel better" the other pony said.

Then silence. 'That must have been the cloaked pony. He is trying to help Daniel. But why?' I thought.

"Wha...what's happening?" Daniel said suddenly.

"The army that was pursuing us yesterday has been sighted" the cloaked pony said.

"What time is it?" Daniel asked.

"It's almost midnight" the cloaked pony said.

"How far away are they?" Daniel asked.

"A mile at least. Why? What do you have in mind?" the cloaked pony asked.

"The two of us will take care of them. Our army needs their power and stamina. We will go silent and assassinate them" Daniel said.

"Let's tell Celestia first" the cloaked pony said.

'Oh, they must be going in a stealth mission. Be back safe, Daniel' I thought as I fell in a meditative state. The next time I woke up was when I heard Celestia's voice:

"Daniel. It is time."

"I will end this, Celestia. You have my word that peace is the only thing that will follow this war" I heard Daniel say as he went outside and Celestia sat down with me.

"I don't know if you hear me Rainbow Dash, but Daniel has gone to end this war. The next time you two will be seeing each other will be when Morbidus will die. At least that is what Daniel told me. I really hope that he can save you and that you will be together" she said and then it was silence again. 'How much time had I been meditating? From killing a camp of the enemy to going at the last battle of this war… he must have a plan' I thought as I forced myself to think rationally. I didn't sleep or meditate again. I just waited. And then I saw something, though I couldn't say what. It was unclear. But when it became clear, I saw a clash of swords. And I was swinging one and Morbidus another one. And it hit me. 'I see through Daniel's eyes. But how?' I thought.

'I think that it is my doing. You can thank me later' a voice said in the back of my mind.

'And who might you be?' I asked as I kept looking at Daniel's fight.

'I have no name, nor age, nor face. I am everything and anything. But I am usually called God or the Supreme Being' the voice said.

'I am talking with God?' I asked, as I didn't move my attention from what was happening to Daniel.

'You are. But I feel like this conversation is rather silly, without you paying attention to it and me having to fill up all the gaps' the voice said amused.

'Oh, I am sorry, but I can't pay attention with this fight going on' I said.

'I see that your love for this mortal is so big that you dare to defy even me. Very well then, you passed my test' the voice said.

'Test? What test?' I asked confused, taking my attention from the fight for a second, as they just seemed to talk.

'The test of your love. So big that it can defy a god' the voice said.

'You can bet on that. Umm… Supreme Being you say? Can I ask you a favor?' I asked, unsure of what was I about to say.

'Say' the voice commanded.

'Please take care of Daniel. I want him to return to me safely' I said, feeling that in some way, this would help him.

'I am sorry, Rainbow Dash, but this depends only on him. Even I am not allowed to mess with this battle. I can't say why, but I am not allowed to. However, I have a good news for you' the voice said.

'What news?' I asked, as I returned my attention on the fight.

'Now, you can return to your old self again' the voice said, before stopping speaking. Just then, I heard Daniel say:

"I don't need a sword to defeat you. I don't need power to defeat you. You know what that explosion means? It means the end of the war. Luna is free. The goblins are free. The ponies are free. You will die and Dash will recover. And you know why? Because I have something you don't. I have love. I receive and give others my love. You won't ever be able to understand that. And that is the reason you and your so called empire will fall. Darkness might win against light, but it never had and never will win against love." Then everything happened in slow-motion. I saw Morbidus as he picked up his sword, his face full of rage, and ran towards Daniel, who deactivated the barrier and was waiting for him with open arms. And then Morbidus hit him, going with the sword straight through Daniel's chest.

"DANIEL!" I cried, tears in my eyes, as I awoke and stood up from the bed. With my right eye, I could still see what was happening, while with my left one I saw Celestia's shocked face, before I teleported out. I teleported to a tree, somewhere and then flew as fast as I could towards my love, towards my Daniel. I saw how the tower began fell, I saw the beam of light and could only think one thing: 'You had to be good to him even in his last moments, hadn't you Daniel?'. Then I was in the tower. My right eye returned to its normal self. In my mind I heard Daniel say: 'I've done it. Dash, you are saved. And it only took me my life.'

I walked over to him, tears in my eyes. He looked at me, crying, but with a smile on his face. His smile made me smile.

"I love you, Dashie!" he said. I could feel my body failing me. I was overrun by sadness. The sadness of never seeing him again. The sadness of having to return to my boring life from before. Before falling on my knees, I looked him straight in the eyes and said:

"I love you too, Daniel!" He looked me in the eyes one more time, before closing them with the smile still on his face. In that moment, I felt as if my hearth had been stabbed with a thousand needles. He was gone. And I was alone once more.

**- In the tower(3rd person)-**

"Daniel? Daniel?! DANIEL!" Dash began crying, beating with her hooves on Daniel's chest.

"Why? why? why?!" she cried again, as her head fell forward on Daniel's wounded body.

**Aaaaand...scene! I hope you enjoyed this special chapter, which brings us inside Dash's mind when she was with a hoof in the grave. It was a difficult chapter to write (and a sad one too :( ), so please review. I want to see how I've done :D**

**Now, I was mostly unable to find a song to fit this chapter, both as content and as mood, until, the other day, I heard a song I used to love, and still do. A song without any verses. Just music. The song referred in this chapter is "Requiem for a dream" by Clint Mansell.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	22. Chapter 22

**Hi everyone. Here is the newest chapter. But first, some answers to some reviewers:**

**The guest who keeps telling me to hurry up : :D I know you want to see the end of the story, but let me give you a piece of advice Gladir would tell you: It is not about the destination, but about the journey. So please, although I try my best, sometimes I have to re-write a chapter a couple of times so it gets good enough. This takes time. And, with school, I don't have a big amount. But, rest assured, as I said this before. I am not like some authors who start something and stop in the middle of it. If I start something, I finish it :D**

**To xdragon55 : I know it is a sad chapter. And that the one before it was sad too, but that was the point of it. I hope I moved a couple of persons and maybe even made someone cry for the characters. But, always, after a storm, comes the sun, with a rainbow, more beautiful, warm and fresh than ever.**

**And, now that this is done, let's get to the chapter, shall we? Enjoy :D**

**One last notice: only the chapter before was Dash's POV, so now we return to the normal, Daniel's POV.**

**Chapter 22 - Waking up from Comatose**

It was an interesting feeling. Being dead. It was like floating in nothingness. It was a big space in which I could see all my memories like I was watching a TV. I saw my early memories with my family, the memories from when I went to Disneyland, the first date. And after that, everything that happened since I came in Equestria. The moment I met Dash, the moment we started going out, the first night together, the training, the battles and finally, the moments of my own death.

'An interesting life. And quite entertaining, I should say' a voice said from behind me. I turned around and saw a man. It was a very old, crippled man that was sitting like he was meditating. His hair was grey towards white, his body was arched forward and his eyes were closed. He had a warm smile on his face and his hands were resting on his legs.

'Wondering who I am?' the man asked, chuckling.

'Actually I am, and also where are we and why are you here with me' I said.

'Still full of questions I see. But let's take it one question at a time. You asked me who I am. Well, I have no name and, most of the times, no body. I am called in many ways along several dimensions and universes, but I believe that in your dimension I was called God' the man said opening his eyes, but his expression remaining unchanged.

'I am talking with God?' I asked surprised and barely believing him.

'The exact same question Rainbow Dash asked me' the man said chuckling.

'Wait...you talked with Rainbow Dash?' I asked, starting to believe him.

'I did. Now the next question was where are we. We are in something called Limbo. It is a place out of time and space, from where we can observe all realities and universes, as well as the memories of the person that is in Limbo. Now, as to why are we here. Daniel, would you mind walking with me?' the man asked as he got up. I shrugged and walked beside him as we started our promenade around several scenes from my memories.

'Daniel, you are here, because you are at a point in your life in which you have to take a very big decision' the man slowly said as he walked.

'My life? Ain't I dead?' I asked surprised.

'Ahh. Another question. Technically, yes. But in your case...things are more complicated. I can't tell you why, but that is the way of things.'

'So, what you are saying, is that I might not be dead, and all this depends on a choice?' I asked surprised and full of hope, because I might be able to see Dash again.

'Well, there are some things you have to know, before making this decision. Things that might make your decision wither tougher or easier, but that must be taken into consideration. Not too long ago, I talked with Rainbow Dash. She was exactly as you would expect her to be towards someone unknown to her, especially when she was watching your battle with Lord Morbidus. I see your expression. Yes, she was watching your battle with him. I allowed that, by bending a few rules of magic and such, because it was an important thing. Why, you will see in a minute. However, towards the end of our discussion, she became serious and asked me for a favor, a favor I knew she would ask for. She asked me to save your life. You can imagine my answer.'

'No, I can't, really' I answered amazed.

'Well, I told her it depends on you. On the way you fought, to be exact. You see, you already made an important decision when you decided to forgive Lord Morbidus the moment before he died. That decision brought you here, instead of the place where Rainbow Dash has been before you managed to save her. How you did that, I don't know, and that says something. But, after all, you are you, and a wise person for your age. Anyway, that selfless sacrifice of yours convinced me of you being worth saving, so I brought you here. Now, for the decision. As I said, this decision is the reason Dash saw the battle, because it might have been the last time she saw you' the man said in a sad voice, resembling a voice of someone who had to give to a man with a foot in his grave, the most terrible of news.

'I see. What is this decision?' I asked.

'Up until now, you lived a dual life. One with the human world and one in the pony world, one starting at the time the other one ended. But one of the two of ideas of you has died and means that the memory of you will be erased from existence in one of the worlds. Basically, you would have to choose the real world in which you wish to live, while any proof of your existence in the other world will be removed. The decision is which world do you choose to live in?' the man asked me becoming serious and unmoving. He closed his eyes and looked up, waiting for my answer.

I myself was shocked. It was the most unexpected thing I could have thought of. And I had to choose. Should I go back to my family which usually ignored me and left me with my own business, or should I go to the pony world, a world full of life, friends, happiness, and, for me, love? My mind was made up. I was never happy in the human world, while the pony world was the best thing that ever happened to me.

'I know what to choose' I said.

'Which world do you want to live in?' the man asked with supreme authority as it was expected from God.

'Just before I answer, no matter what world I choose, that would be my world forever and I will get to keep my powers, and be able at some point to travel across the worlds and observe things from afar?' I asked.

'I wish you could. But no, not really' the man said. I nodded as a smile formed on my face and said:

'I never was a great fan of being a powerful creature. That much power bring with it a great responsibility. But I just wanted to make sure. Then, I choose to live in Equestria' I said.

'Interesting decision. Now, let me tell you something. Actually what you asked me is possible, but I didn't want it to influence your decision' the man said. I nodded and said:

'Thank you for telling me. These powers will be a great help in keeping the peace in Equestria. Now, may I return to my world?'

'Yes, you may, but you have to promise me you won't tell anyone of this meeting, except Rainbow Dash' he answered with a smile as my shape dispersed. 'We will meet again, Daniel Zerk, and next time, I really don't know what I would be able to do for you' the man said, as he started walking in a different direction, while angel wings grew on his back and his body faded.

**-Back in the tower-**

I opened my eyes to see Rainbow Dash crying her eyes out on my chest. She didn't even felt my hearth beating or realize that I was alive and that the hole in my stomach was no longer bleeding and, in fact healed. I put a hand in her rainbow mane, caressing her hair, and said:

"Now, you wouldn't think I would be gone for long, and leave you prank the world of Equestria alone?" as a smile appeared on my face. Her head bolted upwards and she looked me dead in the eyes. I could read sadness, followed by confusion and finally relief, as she didn't wait for another second and kissed me. With that kiss, our mental connection repaired completely, becoming even more powerful than before and the emotions that traveled through it made both of us happy. By now, I thought the tower had fallen, but it was still up, held probably by magic.

"DANI! I thought I lost you!" Dash said as she broke the kiss and looked at me. "How did you survive?" she asked confused.

"Someone asked God to keep me alive, and it did" I said as I smiled at her. Realization washed over her and she began crying of happiness. I began getting up and Dash helped me, as we teleported outside the tower. We slowly walked towards the place where John, Luna, the Special Ops corp, and now, Celestia and Shining Armor were. Celestia was keeping the tower up with her magic. The moment she saw us, she let it fall.

"Daniel, you are fine. Thank God!" John said as he was lying on the ground, still wounded.

'You don't even know how right you are!' I thought smiling at him as I would smile at an old friend." You look like hell, John. Let me give you a hand" I said as I healed him with a move of my hand. It looked like my healing skills had got even better. He got up slowly and nodded at me.

"Thank you for the rescue" Luna said bowing. I bowed to her, as did Rainbow Dash.

"Rainbow Dash. I see you are now fine. The moment you woke up was a shock for me and then you teleported. I had to teleport after you and saw the tower falling and you going towards it. I am really glad you are both fine" Celestia said with a smile.

"Thank you, Celestia" I said with a smile.

"You look battered. Great job, really" Shining Armor complimented as he came closer to us.

"Thanks" Dash said.

"We are so glad that you two are fine. It would have been a disaster otherwise" Twilight said with as smile, as all the others nodded.

"I told you he can do it" John added laughing.

"Okay guys. Let's go home" I said with a smile, as Dash teleported all of us outside our camp. As soon as the pony army saw us, they began stomping with their hooves as applauds and cheering us. That was it. The war was over. For now, at least. I was, however, marked by what Lord Morbidus said, just before he was gone: that he failed his master. But that was of no importance now.

**-Later, that evening-**

"And that was all that really happened while you were away" I told Dash as she gasped at the amount of training I managed to do. We were in the tent she was before, when she was still under the spell.

"That is really impressive. Of course, I didn't tell you that I saw and heard part of what happened . I don't know how" she said with a smile. I nodded slowly.

"I can't explain how that happened" I said bursting out laughing.

"Why are you laughing?" she asked confused.

"Because it is funny that the whole time I imagined myself talking to you, even if you could not answer, but I didn't expect you to hear me. And you actually did. And I bet that some things I said changed your opinion about me. You probably think I'm a savage person for doing what I did with that camp and for saying that I would kill anyone for you" I said looking her in the eyes. Then she started laughing.

"See, I told you the situation is funny" I said.

"Yeah, it is, but it is only funny because, for one time, you have no idea what I am thinking about you" Dash said putting her hooves around my neck. My eyes widened with surprise and I asked:

"How come?"

"Well, at first I was a little scared, but, being in the position I was, I had a lot of time to meditate on the situation and the actions that you took in order to save me. I realized that I would have done that and even more to save you. And you know what these actions tell me about you?" Dash whispered in my ear.

"Amaze me!" I whispered too.

"Well, they show that you are a caring, honorable, selfless and trustworthy person. You killed an entire camp of enemies, but not a goblin, you fought a war without killing them, you saved more ponies than any living creature in Equestria, you saved me, Luna, Celestia, John and our friends from the wrath of Lord Morbidus and you even forgave him for what he did, before he died" she whispered.

"I guess so. Oh, I just remembered. We never told Gladir about the end of this war. We should go talk to him together, since I told him the next time he would see me, would be with you" I said, giving her a smile.

"Let's" she said, getting in a meditation position and me, morphing in my dragon form, sat in front of her, with the dragon necklace around my neck. She looked at me in a weird way, that made her look very seductive and wild, but I shrugged it off for now. We both focused on the necklace and we found ourselves in the Dreamscape. Gladir, and all of the other knights were there, waiting for us. Galdir bowed first, and the others followed. Then he said:

'Welcome back, Leader of the Knights. I see that your mission was completed.'

'Wait ... Leader of Knights?' Dash asked.

'I tell you later. Yes Merlin, I managed to take care of Morbidus and save Dash, but I need your advice on something I found out in that battle, a thing I haven't told anyone now. Morbidus said with his last breath that he failed his master and asked him for forgiveness' I said serious.

'What?' Dash asked, while the other knights began talking among themselves.

'Yes. But I want this to remain a secret for now. We will see to it in a month or two, but for now, we all need a break, so please don't tell anyone' I said.

'Of course I won't, but don't you think Celestia should know?' she asked.

'We will talk to her, later, this evening' I said.

'Daniel. We want to tell you something. We found out some time ago that Morbidus had a former master, somewhere in the human world, that taught him the dark ways, a master we now believe to be living in our world. However, we have no idea where he is at the moment. We will search through memories and places as much as we can to find him. Until we have any information, I advise against telling everyone' Gladir said.

'I understand. I have a plan, so nothing to worry about. Now, let's return to the matter at hand. I completed the mission and saved Dash and I came here to give you this wonderful news' I said nodding.

'Of course. That is a very good news and I don't expect any less of you. Let me know when it is going to happen' Gladir said with a smile.

'Of course' I said as Dash looked at me confused and I just winked at her.

'I wish all the best and hope to hear from you soon' Gladir said.

'Of course. Talk to you later. Goodbye fellow knights' I said as I and Dash bowed and we returned to reality. Dash looked at me and asked:

"Leader of Knights?"

"Yeah, Gladir considered that they needed someone more powerful than any of them to represent them in the Council"I said.

"What Council?" Dash asked.

"I don't know yet. But I have a feeling that we are going to find out soon" I said looking outside. John and Shining Armor were waiting for us.

"Hey Dani! The Princess wants you and Dash to talk in front of the pony army" Shining Armor said.

"Very well, we are coming now" I said as me and Dash left the tent to join our friends and go towards a stage made in a hurry.

"And here are our heroes, our defenders in time of need. Daniel Zerk and Rainbow Dash!" Celestia said as all the ponies started cheering. I put a hand out in the air and silence fell on the crowd. Dash began speaking:

"Dear ponies. I want to thank all of you for having the courage to fight in this war. Without you and Daniel, I wouldn't be here today. The war is now over and it is time for celebration!" The ponies began cheering again. I applauded and then said:

"Thank you Dash. But I have a few words to say as well. I want first of all to ask all of you for a moment of silence for our fallen friends and goblins." After a couple of moments of silence, I said:

"Now, I want to thank John here for his help in my training, I want to thank the Knights of Truth, I want to thank Celestia and Luna and I want to thank you all for having the courage to defend your loved ones and put your lives on the line for what is yours. This war is over and with it, a new peace came over Equestria and not only. But I will ask of you all to remember what is the cause we fought for, because that cause united us all as a force. Now, as my beloved Rainbow Dash said, it is indeed time for celebration. And I want to make this celebration even bigger. In order to do that..." I kneeled and turned my face to Rainbow Dash and asked:

"Rainbow Dash, will you do me the happiness and join me in the ceremony of marriage?" The expression on the army as well as all my friends was priceless, while Dash burst into tears and said:

"I would like nothing more than that!" and she hugged me tightly. The cheers from before were nothing compared to the eruption of the ponies now. I think the cheering could be heard for miles around. After the cheering stopped for a moment I continued:

"And I want to invite every pony in Equestria, as well as a delegation of the goblins, which must include our prisoner from Canterlot. Shining Armor, I would like you to see to that."

"Of course" he said with a smile.

"John, would you be our best-man?" I asked.

"That would indeed be an honor" he said laughing.

"Then it is settled. The wedding will be in two weeks in Canterlot. I wish everyone the merriest of time until then!" I said loudly and then spoke somewhat quieter towards Celestia.

"Could we have a meeting inside your tent after this? I would like Luna, John and Shining Armor to be present too."

"Of course" she said before the crowd started to thin. We slowly walked towards Celestia's tent and Dash asked me with the widest grin she had:

"How long have you been planning this?"

"Since before the war" I answered laughing. We reached the tent in a couple of minutes, and inside were Celestia, Luna, John and Shining Armor.

"Congratulations!" they cheered as we got inside.

"I can't wait for your wedding. I knew you two would get past what happened" John raising a cup of wine he made appear and drinking it.

"Thank you. Thank you. But, unfortunately, this is not why I wanted to talk with you guys. I found out some disturbing news during the fight with Morbidus" I said becoming serious. All of their moods changed from jolly to serious in an instant. John made the cup disappear and then sat down. All of their eyes watched me, demanding information.

"I found out that Morbidus had a master" I said, looking down and then looking at each of their faces, to see their stunned expressions. "I've just talked to Gladir and found out that the Master might be in this dimension, to say so. And he might want vengeance" I continued, before being interrupted.

"And I was hoping for a break" John said looking down.

"And you shall have it. The problem is, we have no idea where he is, so until he makes a move, we have nothing to worry about. However, I would like to make a proposal. I want to send someone as a representative of the pony race to the goblins and ask for a representative from them for us. I want to create a treaty of peace and helping in case of another war. And to share information with them about this matter. At the first meeting, me and Dash will go, but after that, I would like Shining Armor to be the Ambassador. Do you agree, my friend?" I asked him.

"As usual, you came up with a strategy. And I think it is a good one, since they are bound to have some information about Lord Morbidus, since he was their leader. Very well then, I agree" Shining Armor said.

"I have a request. I would like to go with you, Daniel, at the first meeting. I want to ask them something about my former apprentice, Ludvic and how he had fallen in the talons of the same darkness he swore to use only for himself, without hurting when not necessary" John said.

"I think it is a good idea. Celestia, Luna, Dash, what do you say?" I asked.

"I go where ever you go, my love" Dash said with a calm smile.

"I think that for now, this should be our course of action" Luna said looking at her sister.

"You are right. Very well, I approve of this" Celestia said, bowing.

"Good, now on to more personal matters. I have a few things to ask of you guys. First, Shining Armor, please send that letter to the goblins as soon as we reach Canterlot so that we can receive a response. And Celestia, I know I already thanked you about the house, but I feel compelled to do it again, and to ask you to let me and Dash stay in Canterlot until we solve this problem once and for all" I said.

"I think it is for the best as well. And, John, if you want, you can stay too, since you are a very important pony in deciding the fate of this still existing war" Celestia said.

"I will" John said and Luna looked at him with a seductive look, which he grinned at. Only I saw that look and caught John's eye and winked to him, congratulating him for accomplishing his own mission. His grin grew and he nodded.

"Now that we solved the more urgent matters, I think it is best that we go have some sleep" Dash said looking at all of us.

"Very well, have some sleep. Tomorrow morning we start moving back to Canterlot" Celestia said as she yawned.

Me, Dash, Shining Armor, John and Luna walked outside of Celestia's tent and went each to our own. Me and Rainbow Dash went to our tent where we lied on one of the beds, in the arms of the other.

"I have missed this so much" I said.

"Me too. I love you and nothing can change that. Remember this" she said as she kissed me and we fell asleep, meeting through our connection once again into our Sanctuary, under the pine tree.

The next morning, me, Dash, Celestia, Luna, Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle were the ones that did several trips forward and backwards, getting each and every pony back to their house. In a couple of hours we were done and we finally teleported in the throne room.

"Well, that was it. For now anyway" Celestia said.

Shining Armor just came in and said:

"I just teleported our former goblin prisoner to his goblin tribe and with that occasion, gave them the letter for your wedding and told him that you demanded his presence."

"Thank you, friend" I said with a smile.

"Well, if this is all, then each of you is free to do what they want. Also, Rainbow Dash, you and Daniel may return to Ponyville until the wedding. Your friends must be waiting for you and I am sure they would love the honor of designing the wedding, the dress and the suit, as well as the decorations, invitations, food, music and everything else. I'll also invite The Jammers for the music and the after party that Pinkie Pie is sure to organize" Celestia said with a smile.

"Thank you. John, Luna, Celestia, Shining Armor, we will be seeing all of you soon" I said as I put an arm around Dash and we were gone.

**Aaaaaaand... here it is. The newest chapter of this story and the one just before the last. As I promised you, I made everything go better. Now, I have a news. This story might get a sequel. I haven't decided yet, but I'll post about it in the next chapter. Anyway, I won't start it until I finish my Rio story, so I can have time to get the ploy done and the main ideas of the sequel...in case I'll write one.**

**The song referred in this chapter is "Comatose" by Skillet, a song that my good friend,HYBRID BATTLESHIP INFINITY210, suggested me some time ago.**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23 - A thousand years**

**Hi everyone! Here is the biggest chapter of this story. It is over 16k words! This is incredible. I am very, very sorry this took so much time to write, but I wanted it to be perfect( I re-wrote it over twelve times), not too rushed and to make sense. Plus, I had a month of insane writer's block and some very important tests and exams...so yeah, sorry it took so long, but I promised I will finish it, so I did :D**

**However, before starting this chapter I want to thank to some people, my most loyal reviewers: DragonLovingBrony and HYBRID BATTLESHIP INFINITY210 . Thank you both for reviewing and stating your opinion regarding the story. Your reviews, as well as the reviews of all my other readers, kept me going during the nights I had writer's block :D**

**And, just for plus flavor, I have a lemon at the end for you guys to enjoy (I mean, a real lemon, not just lemonade as the other two before this one :)) It is marked with XxX. It can be skipped if you don't like this kind of things. Also…it is in dragon form, so…your choice ). So, enough rambling...Enjoy :D**

The sun shone brightly over the small city of Ponyville. I opened my eyes and saw Rainbow Dash still sleeping, with her head on my chest in our bed. Today, a week would pass since we returned to Ponyville. All of our friends, as well as us, returned to our old and normal selves: Rainbow Dash pranked everyone, sometime helped by me, Apple Jack returned to her farm, along with Big Mac, Pinkie Pie retuned to being her funny self, Rarity returned to making fashion for ponies everywhere in Equestria now, since her designs have been recognized at the Ball at Canterlot, Fluttershy returned to her shy self, while Twilight and Spike returned to maintaining the library of the city.

'Since Dash is still sleeping, I might as well go and talk a little with Gladir' I thought as I closed my eyes and focused. Soon, I was in the DreamScape and Gladir was in front of me.

'Aah! Daniel! What a surprise! What brings you here?' Gladir asked with a smile.

'Well, I promised to tell you when the wedding takes place. It will be a week from now, at Canterlot' I said with a smile.

'Oh, how wonderful! I can't wait. I suppose the other knights are invited as well?' Gladir asked.

'Of course. All the population of Equestria is invited, living or ghost. Plus some goblins' I said with a smile.

'Goblins? I suppose for some treaty as in the old times?' Gladir said expectantly.

'Yes and no. The talking about treaty will take place later. Now is just socializing and having fun' I answered.

'I see. Well then, I wish the best of luck to you, Daniel. See you soon' Gladir said with a smile. I nodded and smiled as I returned in my room. Dash was still sleeping, so I decided to give her some more time, while I looked around the room. I used to do that a lot since when we returned. We modified the room a lot. The bed that now was a queen-sized-bed, was in the corner with Dash's side facing the big window. Against the wall with the door towards the living room, the one on the left of the window, was a big closet that was now stacked with clothes for us, courtesy of Celestia, including our armors. Against the wall opposed to this one, where the door to the awesome bathroom in which me and Dash began knowing each other better, were a couple of racks with rock and jazz guitars, as well as a couple of drum sets. We received these as a gift from one of the guys I saved in the camp. Apparently, he was an instrument maker and didn't charge us for making these. He just said he was thankful to us for saving him. 'The ponies don't stop from amazing me. I don't think such acts of kindness are even existent in the human world' I contemplated for a moment before starting chuckling. 'And I am sounding like an old geezer now, contemplating life' I thought again. I didn't see that my laugh woke up Dash, who was now looking at me with a smile, until after she said:

"So, what's so funny early in the morning?"

"I was just thinking about life here and in the human world and realized that I was thinking like an old geezer" I said smiling at her as well. She looked at me for a couple of seconds, trying hard not to laugh, before she burst out laughing hard enough to wake the entire Ponyville. After she calmed herself, she said:

"Well, if you want to become an old geezer, you need a staff and a long white beard" and she begun laughing again. I laughed with her for some time. Our laughs died soon and we just stood there, in a very enjoyable silence, enjoying each other's company.

"So, what's the plan for today?" Dash asked looking me in the eyes, expectantly.

"Well...since our wedding is in week, we should stop by our friends and see about its organization" I said matter-of-factly.

"Why today?" she asked pouting a little.

"Well, it will take all of them quite a while to prepare such a wedding. The dress and the tuxedo would most likely keep Rarity busy, while the cooking would keep the rest busy for quite some time, so we should start as early as we can, so that they have time" I said, explaining things. Dash began laughing again.

"What?" I asked utterly confused.

"You really sound like an old geezer" she said still laughing. I smiled and decided to make her shut up for a second, by surprising her.

"And we are going somewhere special tonight" I said and her laugh stopped in an instant as her curiosity got the better of her:

"Where? Have I been there before?" she asked almost jumping up and down.

"Now, I can't tell you where, but I can tell you that you will enjoy it and we will spend quality time together" I said smiling and kissing her. She kissed back and then said:

"Any second spent with you is quality time."

"Thanks. What do you say about a pancake breakfast?" I asked, hearing her stomach growl. Her face reddened a little as she said:

"Not a bad idea. Let's have some."

After I made about six of pancakes and we ate them, I said:

"What do you say if we go see Twilight first?"

"Sure...but just so I know, why her?"

"Well, I don't know about you, but I have never been to a wedding before and I don't really know the customs in Equestria."

"Neither do I. Well then, that's settled" she said getting up and flying out of the window. I made my wings appear and I flew after her, towards the library. We landed there and I knocked at the door. After a couple of minutes, a sleepy Spike opened the door and said:

"Hey you two. What's with the morning call?"

"Umm...Spike? It is almost noon" Dash said. His whole being woke up and he panicked a little.

"Oh no. Twilight is going to have me for this. I was supposed to clear the library but I fell asleep and overslept."

"Don't worry. You'll have plenty of time to do so. Me and Dash are here to talk with Twilight and it would take at least a couple of hours for us to finish" I said smiling.

"Okay. She's in her room. Twilight! You got guests! They're coming up!" Spike said loud enough that Twilight heard him. He put the book down and was about to open the door when me and Dash came in.

"Umm...sorry for coming like this, but we need your help. Now, I know you all want to help with the wedding, but I have some questions" I said very apologetic. She smiled and said:

"Sit, I'll answer if I know." We sat down and looked at her for a couple of seconds. I drew a deep breath and said:

"Will you help us with planning?"

Her eyes grew like saucers.

"Of course I will! Oh my god! What fiend would I be if I didn't? Now, tell me what you need" she said jumping around a bit and then sitting down.

"Umm...well, what exactly do we need for a wedding?" I asked confused. I was great at planning wars and strategies, but I was a total disaster when planning an event like this.

"Well, you will need a location. That is already taken care of. Next, you need guests. That is my brother's part. You will need food and drinks. Maybe Apple Jack and Fluttershy can help you with that. Decorations are next and I am sure both Pinkie and Rarity would love to help you with that. Next you two need the dress and the suit, which I am sure, Rarity will find very enjoying making. And last, but not least, the wedding ceremony" she said smiling.

"Umm...yeah...about that...what are we supposed to do there?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"What? You don't know?" Twilight asked a little surprised.

"Well, I have never been to a wedding before and even if I would have gone, I think we all might have different customs. The only custom I know about is the best-man I am supposed to have" I said.

"Hmm...I suppose you are right. It isn't that hard, though. It will go something like this: you, Daniel, will be escorted in front of Celestia by your best-man, John in this case. There you will wait for Rainbow Dash to be escorted by a bridesmaid. After that, the best-man stands behind you, while the bridesmaid stands behind Rainbow Dash. Then Celestia says some things, you say your oaths to one another and then you kiss the bride. As simple as that" she explained.

"I see. Now, if I come to think of it, it resembles the customs on Earth a little" I said thinking.

"See? Not that hard. Now, anything else you need?" she asked sweetly.

'Dash...we have a problem' I told her through the mental link.

'We don't have a bridesmaid' she answered knowing exactly what I was thinking about.

'Yep. So, who should we choose?' I asked.

'Well, since John is the best-man, I say we choose Luna' she said.

'Dash, you are brilliant!' I said smiling at her. All this conversation took us only a moment and I said:

"Actually Twi, yes. Could you please send a message to Princess Luna and ask her to be our bridesmaid? Since we didn't know the customs, we hadn't had the opportunity to tell her."

"Of course. Well, if this is all, please excuse me" she said as she got up and went to write the message. Just then, Spike came in with a mountain of books and said towards us:

"Geez. Thanks for keeping her busy."

"No problem. See you later" I said as we left the library and stopped in the middle of the street.

"Where now?" I asked Dash.

"We could go to Rarity and Pinkie first. Just to get the decorations and costumes out of the way" she said.

"Are you sure? Won't you hate being the one to stay there like a statue while Rarity takes your measures and mine for an entire day?" I asked chuckling.

"The sooner we go, the faster we get out" she said laughing.

"I suppose so. Very well then. After you" I said and we walked through the city for some time until we reached Rarity's house. I knocked at the door and after a couple of seconds, Rarity opened.

"Daniel! Rainbow Dash! What a lovely surprise! Come in, come in!" she said and we went inside.

"Now, how may I be of service?" she asked with a smile.

"We were wondering if you could help us with the wedding" Dash said with a smile.

"OH! Of course I will help. What is the you need help with?" she asked.

"Our costumes and, if you still have time, a little decoration with flower arrangements" Dash said.

"Flower arrangements? I would love to. But I didn't take you as a pony who loved such things" Rarity said, taking us to a back room and putting each of us on a small designated area so that she could get our measurements.

"Well, I suppose I am doing it for the wedding, but I think it would look nice" Dash said unsure.

"Just lovely" Rarity said as she worked in a frenzy, getting measurements, noting them down, choosing materials and coming back for more measurements. "You know Rainbow Dash, I could never have guessed you would be the first to get married in our little group. I always imagined Twilight or me as the first" Rarity said with a smile as she took the final measurements.

"I didn't think either, but fate had something else prepared...or more like...someone else" Dash said looking over at me with a warm glance.

"Okay. I am done. Come back in about four days so I can get the last details done and then, I will take care of the flowers. But, just so I know, Who would prepare the rest of the decorations?" Rarity asked.

"Pinkie will be doing it. Or, at least, I hope she will do it" Dash said.

"Perfect. Don't worry, she will do it in no time" Rarity said. "Now, move along. I need time and space to work" she added and we left.

"Well, what now?" I asked as I looked at the sky. It was almost dark and if we went anywhere else tonight, I couldn't get Dash where I wanted.

"I say we continue tomorrow. After all, we still have an entire week left starting from tomorrow" Dash said with a smile.

"Okay then. Follow me" I said as I began flying up. She followed me and asked:

"So...where are we going again?"

"I'll tell you if you beat me in a race" I said with a grin. Her face became serious and a serious grin appeared:

"Oh, this is sooooo on" and she shot upwards. I followed her and saw what she wanted to do. She wanted to use a Sonic-Rainboom to get the speed. 'Very well' I said and shot after her. I caught up with her just as she began diving. I dove with her and saw the air around us becoming like a barrier. Her smile began growing as the air around her and me formed a spear-like shape. Then she sped up more. And so did I. And then- BOOM! The air around us exploded and the shockwave could be heard for over miles. She had a rainbow trail behind her while mine was a ghostly dark-blue. She looked over at me and when she saw that I had done a Sonic-Rainboom with her, her grin was so much bigger than before. It looked like she forgot everything about the race so I took lead and guided her towards the Everfree Forest, towards the pine under which we first slept one in the arms of the other. We landed in the clearing a couple of seconds later and I said:

"Now THAT was awesome!"

"It was! How did you do a Sonic-Rainboom?" she asked me.

"Followed the teacher" I said and she smiled.

"I suppose it is a tie then" she added.

"Yeah, but we are already here" I said as I summoned my sword. "Would you care for a duel?" I asked.

"Let's see what can you do" she said as she made her sword appear as well. We began trading blows. Not powerful and it resembled a sort of dance. Suddenly, she said:

"I suppose this now has become a part of us."

"Yes, it has. But, if I know you well enough, I dare to say you enjoy this a lot" I said with a smile as I blocked one of her attacks.

"You have no idea" she said and this time, we clashed full force and face to face. She gave me a quick kiss and disarmed me.

"Now, I believe I won" she added with a smirk.

"I believe so" I added laughing and picking up my sword. Both our swords vanished in thin air and I went towards a pine and sat down:

"Come here" I said patting the ground beside me. She did with a smile and lied down, with her head on my chest. After a couple of minutes of relaxing silence, I said:

"You can see now where i wanted to bring you." She looked around a little, saw that the tree under which we were wasn't chosen at random and smiled.

"I do" she said as she got even more comfortable on my chest. After a couple of minutes she asked:

"Why?" This question took me by surprise.

"Why what?" I asked confused.

"Why did you choose to fall from the sky in front of me?" she asked looking at me.

"It wasn't really a choice. I just looked in the mirror" I said.

"Yes, but why did you? Why did you look in the mirror instead of going back at what you were doing before that?" she asked. I was reluctant to give my answer.

"Daniel...I have been in your mind and saw everything about you...but this is the only thing I did not understand" she said. I sighed and said:

"Because I needed to have a look at myself. In the time before I came here, I was a very unhappy person and barely talked to people. I had many thoughts that now I am ashamed of and you know them very well. To put in bluntly, my world was clouded without a chance of clearing. I lost all my friends when I moved in the city you saw in my mind. I remember nothing more from my friends but their laughs of happiness. And you also saw the trip I was in just before coming here. Well...let's say that my family used to ignore me for long periods of time, becoming more focused on my sister, but after that trip, when I saw them having fun and not inviting me, something broke in me and I began seriously contemplating my life. That is why I looked in the mirror. To see if I was still the same person." I looked at her and saw her stunned face.

"Man, I know you said it was rough, but this is just so not fair" she said giving me a tight hug.

"Yeah, I know. But this is all in the past. Since I came here, I never felt alone and sad, unless you count THAT period of time. I guess fate has a way of working things out" I said, hugging her too.

"Let's get some sleep...I can almost feel that tomorrow will be a hard day" Dash said with a smile.

"OH, PWLEASE! It will only be hard because you will have to get up early so we can get things done" I said almost bursting out laughing. She glared at me in a comical way and said:

"At least you are laughing now" and then she put her head back on my chest, hugged me tightly and promptly fell asleep. I looked at her and realized she tricked me into laughing. 'Always a master' I thought as I, myself closed my eyes and fell asleep.

**-the next morning-**

'Damn sun' I thought as the first rays of the sun hit me in the face. 'I forgot that in this place, the sun hits me right in the eyes' was my next thought and then I promptly put my head in Dash's mane to excape the sun. After a couple of seconds, I felt her moving and she said:

"Morning sleepy head!"

"Morning" I said, my voice muffled by her mane.

"What are you doing?" she asked not moving.

"Hiding my face from the sun" I said and felt her laughing.

"Come on, get up. As you said last night, we got a full day of work and planning to do" she said lifting her head and making me lift mine.

"Since when are you an early riser?" I asked as I tried to shook sleep off of me.

"Since someone has to some days" she said getting up. I also got up and made my wings appear and stretched them.

"So where to, Captain?" I asked jokingly.

"Let's go to Pinkie first. She is always up early" she said chuckling and we flew lazily towards her home. We reached it sooner than I expected since before knocking and going in, we could hear her singing. We knocked and she opened. She was wearing a party hat and had some balloons tied to her tail.

"Good Morning!" she said with a big smile.

"Umm...Pinkie, what are you doing?" Dash said pointing at the balloons.

"Oh, these? I forgot about them. I put them there to find them in case I needed them for something" she said as she untied them.

"Umm...yeah...can we come in?" I asked with a smile.

"Of course. Come right in" she said and we went inside.

"So, what brings you here?" she asked surprised and jumping around us.

"We wanted to know if you would like to help us with the wedding" Dash said. Pinkie stopped in the air and I was surprised that she seemed frozen for a second before she ran back in front of us and began:

"OHMYGOD!OHMYGOD! OF COURSE I WANT TO HELP! WHAT CAN I DO?"

'That went better than I expected' I thought as her rambling kept to a minimum.

"Umm...you could help us with the decorations?" Dash said tentatively.

"THAT WOULD BE AWESOME!" Pinkie said already jumping around again before stopping again and asking:

"What decorations should I make? What is the theme of your wedding?"

"Wedding theme?" I asked.

"Well yeah. Weddings, as well as all parties, have a theme. So what is yours?" she explained.

"Umm..."I said thinking hard. 'Dashie, what do you think?' I asked her using the mental link again.

'I don't know...Peace?' she said, being at a loss.

'I like the sound of that' I said and then looked at Pinkie.

"I think our theme would be peace" I said.

"Peace huh? I have the perfect ideas!" she said beginning to jump again.

"Umm...Pinkie?" I said again.

"Yep?" she said.

"Rarity will be helping with the flowers" Dash said.

"Oh, that is lovely. I am not good at those and she really gets them right. Well, I better go tell her the theme" she said and was about to leave, before I said:

"And we also want to ask you if you could make a wedding cake."

Both she and Dash looked at me surprised.

"Of course I will. After all that is what I do: cakes!" she said jumping out and leving us inside her house. After we were sure he left, we left her house, closed the door and Dash asked me:

"Why did you ask her to do the cake? I thought Fluttershy would do it."

"Yeah...I thought so too, but just now I realized that we don't have wedding music" I said and Dash's face went sudden with shock.

"How could I forget about music?" she asked herself.

"Don't worry. I have this planned, I think" I said. She relaxed and said:

"So, where now?"

"I guess Fluttershy" I said and we flew together towards her little cottage in the woods. We flew slowly, enjoying the time and the way the air flowed around us. We reached the cottage and we landed just outside the door. I knocked and said:

"Fluttershy? Are you home?"

A bunny opened the door. It must have been Angel. We went inside and in a couple of seconds, Fluttershy joined us.

"H-hi there, Rainbow Dash and Daniel. How can I help you?" she asked in her quiet voice.

"Umm...we were wondering if you wanted to help us with the wedding?" I asked with a smile.

"Oh. Of course I will help" she said smiling.

"Great. Thanks. We thought you could help us with the music a little bit. Princess Celestia said that she would invite the Jammers, but I don't think they will be singing during the ceremony" I explained.

"I see. I will do my best" she said with a smile.

"Thanks again. See you later" Dash added as we left the cottage.

"This one went pretty fast" she noticed.

"Yeah, it did. Well, if I am not mistaken, there is only one more pony that we have to talk to" I said with a smile. She nodded and we flew once again, going towards Apple Jack's farm. I was really happy that we could finish with this thing today so that we could use the rest of five days until the wedding to enjoy ourselves.

As we flew, we passed over Twilight's house and we saw Spike making signs at us to land. We landed beside him and he said:

"I got a message from Princess Luna for you two. She says she is honored to be the bridesmaid and asks for you two to be present at the castle tomorrow morning to taste the food that is being prepared. After that, she says you can return here until the day before the wedding, when Rainbow Dash has to come to Canterlot alone. Starting that moment, you are forbidden to see her until the wedding."

"I see. Tell her we will be there" Dash said with a smile.

"Okay. Hey, where are you heading?" Spike asked curious.

"To Apple Jack's" I said.

"Oh. I thought you might be going to Rarity's" he said not looking us in the eyes.

"You know, you two would look cute together" I said with a grin and then I flew up with Dash. I saw his blush as he waved at us.

"So, how do you know about him and his crush on Rarity?" Dash asked bemused.

"Remember when I told you that you were some kind of show in my world? There was this part of the show when he almost told Rarity that he had a crush on her" I said with a smile.

"Oh. I remember that. It really happened" Dash said looking at me.

"But how is that possible?" I asked.

"Dunno… maybe our world are connected or something" she said as confused as me. We dropped this subject to ponder on it later as we landed in front of the barn where we could usually find Apple Jack or Big Mac.

"Yello? Anyone home?" I asked.

"Yeah. Come in" said Apple Jack from inside the barn.

We went inside and she was just doing some farm chores as usual.

"Hey, ya' two. So, What brings ya' here, ey?" she asked stopping for a moment to talk with us.

"Will you help with the wedding?" Dash asked.

"Ya can bet ma hooves I will! So, watcha need?" Apple Jack asked happily.

"Well, we thought you can take care of the drinks, after all you make the best cider I have ever tasted" I said.

"And that's not all. I make whiskey now. Wanna try it?" she asked with a grin.

"Sure. Bring it on" I said. She brought a couple of cups with whiskey and me and Dash gulped some of it. Man, it was stronger than the one made in the human world. What the actual….? What do they use for it?

"This is really strong?" I said, feeling it burning my insides and heating me up pleasantly.

"No kidding" Dash said as she took a step backwards. She only drank a mouth and she seemed to be drunk already. And she never got drunk so fast. Even I felt a little dazed.

"So, a bit too strong?" Apple Jack asked as she herself gulped half a cup before she stumbled backwards. "Man, Big Mac labeled the bottles wrong again. And he made it too strong again" she said drunk.

"You better go sleep it off" I said.

"Yeah. I'm going now" she said as she began walking. She stopped and added : "Don't worry. I won't bring this one. I'll make a weaker one. And we will take care of drinks for ya" and then she left.

"Dash, can you fly?" I asked, unsure of my own ability.

"I don't think so. I am really glad though that we went here last" she said with a chuckle.

"Well, it looks like we teleport home. I'll do it" I said and in a flash of blue light, we were back in our bathroom.

"You missed" she said laughing. I aimed for the bed first time but we got in the bathroom. Yeah, I missed, but I had to find something.

"I didn't. I heard that a cold big splash on the face helps" I said as I splashed some water on her face. She shrugged and did the same and we felt the dizziness lift a little.

"Let's get to sleep. I feel like I am not going to wake up until tomorrow" she said.

"I know" I added as we lay on the bed. She turned her face towards me, kissed me on the cheek and then put her head on my shoulder and promptly fell asleep. I smiled, put my arms around her and fell asleep as well. The sleep was heavy and dreamless.

**-the next day-**

I woke up around lunch. 'Man, that whiskey sure was strong' I thought before a devastating headache hit me. It felt like my head was going to fall. I groaned and this woke up Dash:

"What time is it?" she asked before she groaned too and I said:

"Headache?"

"You have no idea" she said grabbing her head. I did but I decided not to pursue this any further and said:

"It's about lunch time" before I groaned again. We had to do something about this headache.

"Dash, any idea how to get rid of this pain?" I asked.

"Yeah, but it hurts only thinking about it" she said as she got up.

"What idea?" I asked getting up too.

"Zecora. It's the only chance" she said as she flew outside through the window and I followed. She guided me through the forest until we reached a small hut with several voodoo masks around it and with smoke coming from inside. Dash knocked. From inside a voice said:

"State your name and come inside, I don't have time to leave aside."

"It's Rainbow Dash and Daniel" Dash said as she pushed the door open. We walked inside and we saw Zecora mixing something in a bowl, while a fire roared behind her.

"What can I do for you two since you are interrupting my work as you do?" Zecora asked with a grin at seeing a human.

"Have anything for headache caused by strong whiskey? And could you please stop talking in rhymes? It makes my head hurt even more" I asked. Zecora looked at me for a second, before saying.

"Fine, I will not speak in rhymes. And yes, I have something for such headaches, but first, you must do something for me Daniel" Zecora said with a wicked smile.

"Wait...how do you know my name?" I asked.

"Your girlfriend said it earlier" she said.

"Man, this headache makes me forget things" I said. "Say, what you need?" I continued.

"Please morph in dragon form. I heard a great deal about your abilities and I wish to see this with my own eyes for ... umm... science" she said a little hesitant.

"Zecora, you should know better than to lie to a Knight of Truth" I said as I morphed, "but, because we are in great need of that medicine, I am going to show you my dragon form."

"Impressive abilities. Sensing lies and having a dragon form. I have never seen something as interesting as you" she said as she gave us a cup of some pleasant smelling liquid which we drank. I tasted as rotten flesh and I almost puked.

"Let it go, dear" Zecora said and I went outside and puked followed by Dash. We went back inside and I said:

"It is not much of an ability, I saw your hesitation and I guessed you were lying. And tell me, this remedy of yours made us puke because...?" I inquired.

"Because you had to get the alcohol out somehow. You are the first person capable of seeing my hesitation. I usually mask it pretty well" she answered. "I also heard you are having a wedding in 5 days and that there will be goblins there" she added.

"You are invited if you were wondering" Dash added.

"Thank you. I am a rather good friend of the goblins" she said.

"Oh. Interesting. Maybe you could help us with some things later" I said.

"Maybe. It depends on what these things are" she said.

"I will tell you when it is time to decide" I said.

"Now you sound like a fairytale hero" she said laughing.

"I guess so. Thanks for the remedy" I said as my headache was gone somehow.

"No problem. You are free to visit any time you want" she said as we left the hut.

"We will" Dash said as we both flew back home to spend the rest of our time until the wedding.

**-Two days later-**

Just after breakfast, we flew outside of the house and headed to Rarity. We had to try the suit and the dress and make last minute changes. The weather was very pleasant today, as if the nature was preparing for the wedding itself. We reached Rarity's house in a matter of minutes. We landed but I didn't knock, because I was afraid that it was too early and Rarity might be still in bed. However, Spike opened the door and said:

"Morning. Come in, come in." I looked at him questioningly, and he shook his head and said:

"Twilight sent me here a couple of minutes ago to see if all was going as it should with the dress and tuxedo and, knowing that you two will come to try them, she gave me this message that her brother sent her. She said it was from the goblins" and Spike gave me a sealed scroll. I took and began reading:

'To Mister Daniel, Leader of Knights of Truth, Dragonborn and man to be married to Rainbow Dash,

We, the goblin race, are very honored to be invited to such a prestigious event. The delegation that we will send will be delighted to bring you some important news regarding the war that passed and the request that you made. We wish you the best of luck, wisdom and tenacity in life, both to you and your partner. The delegation will arrive in Canterlot a couple of days before the wedding.

With high respect, the leader of the goblin race, Gorum the Wise'

I looked up from the note and gave it to Dash to read it too. She did and she smiled.

"Looks like we made some new friends" she said.

"Indeed, it looks like that. Spike, does Celestia know about this message?" I asked.

"Twilight said that there have been three messages: one for Celestia, one for Shining Armor and one for you. I don't know the content of the other two, however" he added seeing the questioning look from me. Just then, Rarity came in the room from somewhere in the back. She looked at us and said:

"Wonderful of you two to join us. Now, let's get to trying the tuxedo, Daniel." And without another word, she pushed me somewhere behind a wall of paper, where she gave me the tuxedo to put on. A couple of minutes later, I came out from behind the wall of paper. I was wearing a deep blue tuxedo with a golden shirt. She even made a pair of shoes that were very good-looking. Dash gasped at me and said:

"Well, aren't you handsome?" before she chuckled. I laughed and said:

"And I feel handsome in these clothes. Awesome job, Rarity."

"Thanks. Now, please change back and leave. I will dress Rainbow Dash, and, unfortunately, I can't allow you to see her in the dress" she said. I nodded, changed, and went outside to wait for Dash. Half an hour later, she came outside and said:

"You will love the dress. I love it!"

"I am sure I will. After all, you hate dresses, so if you like it, then I will too" I said teasingly.

"Right…now that this has been taken care of…what should we do?" she asked.

"I guess we should go to Canterlot and see how the preparation is going there and make the last adjustments there. After all, there are only two days left. Plus, today the delegation is supposed to arrive" I said suddenly remembering the scroll.

"Oh…I forgot about that. Let's get going" she said as we teleported from Rarity's house to leave a note on Twilight's and everyone else that agreed to help us door and we then teleported just outside the castle of Canterlot. We took the guards by surprise and they almost attacked us, but after they saw who we were, they smiled, and let us through. I told them:

"Today, some goblins will arrive here. Have you been informed?"

"The Princess informed us. They should arrive in a matter of minutes" one of the guards said. I nodded and then me and Dash went towards the throne room. The guards there stopped us and then announced: " Daniel and Rainbow Dash are here."

"Let them in" came Celestia's voice. The guards opened the door and we were greeted by Celestia, Luna and Shining Armor.

"Ah, Daniel, so good to see you again" Celestia said.

"So good to see all of you again. Where's John?" I asked looking around.

"I am right here" he said as he just came in and hugged me.

"My, my, my, aren't you happy to see us?" I said laughing.

'You bet I am. I don't have anyone to train with except Shining Armor here and he is not always available. Plus, some mind games would be really fun" he said laughing.

"Indeed. But tell me, how is your tuxedo coming around?" I asked, hoping he will dress somewhat different for the wedding. He shuffled his feet for a second and said:

"You know, tuxedos aren't really my thing. Must I wear one?"

"I would prefer you do. After all, you will be leading us with the help of Princess Luna" I added, my eyes shining a bit. He got my point and said:

"Of course. It is ready. And it looks good, thank you." Both me and him began laughing. After a couple of seconds we were stopped by a guard that said:

"The goblin delegation has arrived."

After that, 4 goblins entered the throne room. We all bowed in respect and so did they. I saw that one of the goblins was the former prisoner I got to know.

"Long time, no see" he said with a grin. "I forgot to tell you my name at that time. I am called Pagon. This is my wife, Cristela. The other two are Gurm and Garm, twin brothers" he added as he motiomed to every one of them.

"Very pleased to meet you. And indeed, I am happy to see you Pagon" I said.

"Welcome in Canterlot. Shining Armor here, will show you to your rooms. After that, you are free to do as you like" Celestia said.

"Thank you, Princess Celestia. My fellow goblins and my wife will go with Shining Armor, but I would prefer to stay for a couple of more minutes and offer my gift for Daniel and Rainbow Dash, as well as bring some interesting news" Pagon said with a smile.

"Of course, Pagon. Shining Armor, if you will" Celestia said. Shining Armor bowed and said to the goblins: "Please follow me" before they left the throne room.

"So…let's get straight to the point. Thanks to you, the goblin race has not become extinct. And Gorum the Wise managed to unite it as a race and no more clans. That is a part of the news and Gorum thanks you for this help. The other part of the news I have is regarding your request, Daniel. Our king agrees to host a peace delegation to form a treaty and also to send a delegation here after that. If you are okay with this, three days from the wedding, we can leave" Pagon said with a smile. I looked at Dash and she nodded.

"It is okay with us. If Princess Celestia agrees, I don't see why not" I said looking at her.

"I agree" she said with a smile.

"That is indeed good news. As for the gift, it is a tradition to offer a bachelor becoming husband the ceremonial ring" he said as he got a ring which he put on my finger. "As for the soon-to-be wife, a delicate traditional gold crown with aquamarines" he said taking one out of his pocket and putting it on Dash head. I will have to ask of you to wear them at the wedding" Pagon said with a smile.

"This is the perfect thing for the dress" Dash said excited.

"I am sure we will" I added with a smile and bowed a little. Pagon smiled, bowed and said:

"Now, please excuse me, but I am tired after the journey, so I will be retiring."

After he left, I turned to Celestia and asked:

"Is everything going as planned with the wedding?"

"All is on time" she said with a smile.

"That is good to hear. Then we will retire as well" I said as we left the throne room and went to our old room in Canterlot castle, which became like a second home to us. We wanted to get a good night sleep since tomorrow would be the last day before the wedding and the day we will have to check on everything.

We lied down in the bed and as we got ready to sleep, Dash said suddenly:

"I am so happy to be here with you. You know, just now, a day before we get married, I realize what a great influence you have on me. I love you."

"I love you too, but this is not like you, so emotional and open" I said with a grin.

"Now, now, Danny boy, I am a girl after all. And I have my moments" she answered with a smirk as she cuddled closer to me and we slowly drifted to sleep.

**-the next morning, one day before the wedding-**

I opened my eyes to find myself alone in the bed. In a swift motion, I got up and looked around for a note or something. Nothing. I used the mental link to Dash:

'Dash, where are you?'

'Getting breakfast. Come in the kitchen' she said as I got up and dressed.

'Why didn't you wake me up?' I asked becoming even more confused.

'Well, you were looking kind of cute sleeping, so I thought you would enjoy it' she said rather provoking. I shrugged as I began my walk towards the kitchen.

'If you say so…hold on onto that breakfast, I am coming now' I added. I reached the kitchen in a matter of a couple of minutes. In the eating area of the kitchen was only Dash, eating some kind of burger and there was another plate for me. I sat down and began eating in silence.

"A good morning would be nice" Dash said with a smirk. I said nothing, but looked at her a little.

"Oh, come on Danny, don't mess with me like that. We both know that you can't resist me and I can't resist you, so why not say something?" she said with the same grin.

"Morning. But please don't do this again without leaving a note or something" I said looking her in the eyes. Her smirk dropped as she saw how serious I was.

"I am sorry Dany. I didn't realize how hard I scared you..." she said coming closer. Suddenly, I was beaming and laughing as hard as I could.

"Now, don't get me wrong, I was a little worried there, and for good reasons, but I can't believe I got you there" I said as I stopped laughing to get some air. Dash looked shocked for a second, before laughing too.

"Well, you are learning" she said as she stopped too for air. We laughed again for a couple of minutes, before we finished our meal.

"So…what now?" she asked curiously.

"I say we go over everything that should be ready for the wedding. Since we are here, let's check the food and the drinks first" I said as we went into the kitchen where bakers and cooks worked very hard on a lot of meals. The chief cook came towards us and said:

"Good morning. What can I do for you two?"

"We just came in to see how the preparations for our wedding is going" Dash said with a smile. The pony's face dropped as he recognized us.

"Oh…I…I didn't recognize you at first. My apologies. All is going as planned and is on schedule. Although, between the three of us, inviting the entire pony nation to the wedding is a little of a stretch, don't you think?" he asked amused.

"Yeah, now that I think of it. But this is not only to celebrate our wedding, this can also be seen as a party for the end of the war which was won by the entire pony race, so I say they have all the reasons to be invited" I said with a smile. The cook thought for a moment and said:

"Hmm….I never saw it like that. I agree with you two. Oh…one of your friends came by and left a ton of bottles of whisky and apple cider for the wedding. I just remembered she said to tell you this" the cook added with a nod.

"Thank you. That means that one of the parts of the wedding is taken care of and in the capable hooves of you" I said as I turned around with Dash and we left the kitchen. We stopped outside, and I said:

"Now, where do we go?"

"We could go to see about the decorations. I really wonder how your peace theme and the wedding decorations are coming together" Dash said, sounding more like Rarity for a second. I shrugged that off too, because, after all this wedding was an important part in both our lives.

We started towards the ball room, but Celestia was just coming out of there

"Ah, you two...we won't be using the ball room for the wedding...it's too small. We prepared the great garden from behind the castle. You can go there see what is going on" she said with a calm smile. We nodded and we went towards the garden. After we were out of Celestia's earshot, I asked Dash:

"So, what do you think she is hiding in the ball room?"

"I haven't the foggiest, but something tells me either we will find out tonight or never" she answered shrugging. We dropped the subject as we reached the great garden. And it was impressive. All sorts of decorations floating around, held by magic, flowers that just opened everywhere and a great deal of drinks and food, nicely put together on the longest table I have ever seen.

"Well, that settles it...we will need to teleport around the table to get the salt from the other end, else it will take a lot of time to pass it around" I said joking about the long table.

"No kidding. Imagine if there were more of these tables" Dash said laughing. Just then, another one appeared and set itself beside the other to guest more ponies. And then another one. And another one. Until there were about twelve.

"Well, now there are enough" I said. Dash just rolled her eyes. And then, a big, round table was carried in the middle of the garden. Man, that table was the size of a pool. A big one. One of the ponies that carried it said:

"This should be enough for the cake. Let's get the table for presents ready."

I looked at Dash and she looked at me.

"I think that in the ball room is the biggest cake ever" I said.

"I guess you are right. Pinkie really did it big this time" Dash said nodding.

After we finished looking at the decorations, we went to check on the aisle and the stage for the music after the ceremony. There was a list on one of the speakers with songs to be sang. It looked like there was going to be a karaoke night too. When Dash wasn't looking, I wrote a title and my name besides it. After that, I turned around and found Dash was already gone. She flew to look at the lights.

"There are so many colors" she screamed from sone distance up.

"Well, we better get going. If I am not mistaken, we need to get lunch and talk with Zecora about the delegation. After all, we promised her" I said with a smile looking up.

"Oh right. I forgot about that"Dash said as she landed and we walked towards the kitchen once more.

"So, that speaker seemed interesting. What did you find out?" Dash asked.

"Umm...I think I jist looked at it because I've never seen one so big" I answered. In truth, I haven't been to a rock concert yet, and a ten-feet speaker really amazed me.

"Oh really? And the paper, what did it say?" she asked.

"Just a list of songs to be played. I wanted to see if I liked all of them" I said.

"And did you?" she asked.

"Yep. In fact, a lot of these songs are from the human world" I said.

"That's interesting. How did they get them?" she asked.

"Don't know" I said as we entered the kitchen to find Zecora inside, eating.

'Well, that makes things easier' I thought.

'Yeah' Dash thought too.

"Hey Zecora. How are you doing?" I asked as we came in.

"Ah, Daniel, Rainbow Dash. What a pleasure to meet you again" Zecora said with a smile.

"Umm...no rhymes this time?" Dash asked.

"No. In fact, I gave up to rhymes. They were starting to annoy even me" she said.

"Funny that is. You are not the first one that talked to us in rhymes when we first met them" I said sitting down and eating a pancake that the cook brought.

"Is that so? Who else did that, might I ask?" she said.

"John Night, a pony wizard" Dash said, eating a pancake too. Zecora's stopped mid-bite.

"It's impossible. He is dead" she said calmly.

"No, he is not. In fact, he is our best-man" I said a little surprised.

"But his spell failed and he is dead. That is impossible. That is what his apprentice, Ludvic, told me" Zecora insisted.

"Wait...you know Ludvic?" I asked surprised.

"Yes. In fact I trained him in potion and poison making" Zecora said.

"Umm...we might need to continue this talk with John here" I said.

"If he is alive, then yes" Zecora added.

"Guard" I called and a young pony came inside.

"You called, sir?" he said.

"Oh, don't call me sir. Call me Daniel. And please tell John Night to come to the kitchen as soon as possible" I told the young guard.

"Yes si...I mean Daniel" he said as he bowed a little and left. We waited in silence for a couple of moments, until John teleported right behind me:

"You called, Daniel?" he asked.

"Yes, in fact, take a seat. We have to talk" I said.

"I can't believe this. You really are alive!" Zecora said astonished.

"A! Zecora! So good to see you again. Haven't seen you in ten years or so. Since Ludvic decided to leave. You seem surprised to see me. Why?" John said with a smile.

"Because Ludvic told me you died" she answered simply.

"And how did you meet Ludvic, besides that time, long ago, when I was with you two?" John asked confused.

"Well, after he left you, he came to me to teach him. He said you died and I took him in to train him in potions and poisons. After three years he left me too" Zecora answered.

"I see. So I now have another piece of the puzzle that is Ludvic's life. I hope goblins know more" John said.

"Ah, that reminds me. Zecora, I want you to be part of our delegation that will work with the goblins, along with John here" I said.

"I see. I will do as you two suggest. But, for now, I suggest you two to go have an early night. Tomorrow you will be needing all your energy" Zecora said with a wink.

"I think we will. Thanks for agreeing. We will be going now" Dash said getting up. I followed and we left for our room.

"Are we really going for a nap now?" I asked.

"Well, unless you have other ideas" Dash said with a grin.

"What time is it?" I asked.

"Almost night, why?" she asked. By now we reached our room. I grabbed a blanket and said:

"Wanna camp somewhere?"

"Sure. Let's go" she said with a smile and we flew through the window. We flew north from the castle, towards some mountains that seemed some distance away. The flight took us some time and was uneventful, if you don't count the cloud race we did. We landed on a ledge, high up that mountain. It was quite cold there so we sat somewhere down, near a big rock. I laid down to look at the stars, with Dash curling over me like a cat. I put the blanket over us and we sat there in a pleasant silence. After some minutes, Dash said:

"Look at us. We became star gazers."

"Oh, and you don't enjoy that?" I asked smiling at her.

"Hmm...I quite enjoy it in fact. Very much to be honest. I was just thinking...I mean...before you came here, I was always bored and couldn't stand staying in one place, except to sleep...and now...I am here. And is all thanks to you" she said slowly.

"Dash, Dash, Dash...it's not the first time we are having this talk, if I am not mistaken" I said chuckling as I started petting her head.

"Hey, that's not nice" she said, pouting.

"Yeah, I know. Now tell me, are we having this talk because you are anxious for tomorrow, am I right?" I asked, turning her head so that she looked me in the eyes.

"Yeah" she said slowly. "I am a little bit worried, to say so."

"Don't be. No reason to. It will be the best day ever. And that is a promise" I said as I kissed her forehead, while she started giggling like a small child.

"Okay dokay. Nighty night" she said after that and put her head down on my chest. I chuckled one last time as I made my wings appear and closed them around us. 'A fire would have been nice' I thought as a shiver passed me. After that, we fell asleep. All was well, until morning came.

**-the day of the wedding, early in the morning-**

It was very early in the morning. The very first rays of the sun hit my wings, making me open my eyes. Under my wings, it looked like it was still a bluish night. I moved them a bit and let the sun hit Dash's face. A couple of seconds later, she woke up and said:

"Early again? It seems that I barely closed my eyes and you wake me up."

"Now, you wouldn't want to be late to the wedding because you weren't ready on time" I said as I opened my wings fully and beat them a couple of times since they were numb.

"I guess not" she said as she took the blanket of her and beat her wings too. She got up and I followed. "We should come here more often. I like this place…it's so quiet…and private" she said as we started our journey back to our room in the castle. We flew swiftly, so that no one would find out we were even gone. We got in bed a good half an hour before someone entered the room without knocking. We, of course, pretended we were asleep. It was Twilight who took Dash away, so that I couldn't see her until just before the aisle. After they left, I told Dash through the mental link:

'Good luck with the girly stuff.'

'Yeah. Yeah' she said sarcastically. I laughed and then I got up to get ready myself. I went to take a shower, which was very pleasant since my stiffened muscle from last night managed to relax completely. While I was still in the shower, someone knocked.

"Who is it?" I asked.

"It's John. Can I come in?" the voice said.

"Sure, just wait a couple of minutes on the bed. I'm in the shower. I'll be right there" I said. Luckily, I had a great habit to take a spare set of clothes with me in the bathroom, so I never ran in the situation of having someone over and them finding me randomly naked. After a couple of minutes, I opened the bathroom door and was dressed in some sport clothes. John was on the bed, reading from a scroll.

"What are you reading?" I asked curious.

"Oh. You are here. That? It's nothing important. Don't worry about it. In fact, you are coming with me. We need to get ready for your wedding" he said quickly hiding the scroll in his cloak.

"We both have to get ready" I said pointing at his cloak.

"Ah. Yes. I suppose so" he said laughing a little. "Well, let's get moving. I'll be having Shining Armor help me" he said as we left. We began walking around the palace until we reached a room that resembled very much my own room.

"Where are we exactly?" I asked as we went inside.

"This? This is Shining Armor's room. And here he is" John said as Shining Armor entered the room with a blue tuxedo that I was pretty sure was mine.

"Finally awake I see. Well, let's not lose any time. We got three hours until the ceremony and you must be ready from all points of view" Shining Armor said with a grin as he made a razor appear. "First, beard off" he said.

"Okay. I was really wondering if you guys even have beards or razors" I said as I took of my T-shirt and went to the bathroom with those two. While Shining Armor was doing the barber's work, John was trying different hair styles, from spiky to normal, to fuzzy, to frizzled…

"Okay John. Stop. I will wear my hair normally" I said as the eleventh hairstyle melted away in his hooves.

"Okay…if you wish" he said as Shining Armor finished.

"Excuse me, but I need to wash my hair. Again" I said as I stepped into the shower. Meanwhile, they returned to the room to get my suit ready.

"You know, you are not a good stylist, no offense" Shining Armor said to John.

"You think so?" he asked with a grin. They began laughing. After a couple of minutes, I was out of the shower again. John went in to get himself ready. After all he was going to wear a suit too. Shining Armor was already in his silver tuxedo. He was just fastening the buttons of my white, spotless shirt so I don't get it wrinkled. Then I put on the pants and received a really nice-looking belt. Then, Shining Armor gave me a tie, which was rather interesting to say the least. It was a lighter bluish color, but it had its own shine. After that, the tuxedo followed, with a nice, cyan handkerchief to go with the attire. Just then, John came out of the bathroom, fully dressed in his suit and looking rather imposing. I smiled at him and turned to look in a mirror. I was absolutely awesome, and feeling awesome. I noticed I also had the ring from the goblins still on my hand and decided to keep it. 'Dash, don't forget the gift from the goblins' I told her through our link. She didn't respond verbally but she seemed to get it.

"Okay, Danny. Ten minutes until the great moment. Are you ready?" John asked with a grin.

"Ten minutes? Wait, when did the hours pass?" I asked confused.

"Time flies Danny. Let's get going" he said as we walked towards the garden where the ceremony was going to take place and where the party after that was going to begin. Shining Armor followed us and, when we reached the great amount of ponies that were there, disappeared somewhere in the crowd. I looked at the crowd. There were so many ponies there, that it seemed impossible so many of them even lived in Equestria. I just hoped that the food will be enough. The crowd of ponies parted like a sea as the ceremonial wedding music began. I saw Fluttershy working her magic with those birds somewhere close by. John began walking me in front of Celestia, who was going to be the one to marry me and Dash. After we reached the front of the aisle, I turned around, waiting for Dash to come. John stood beside me with the biggest grin I have ever seen on him. After that, I turned my face towards the crowd that was gasping in surprise. And when I saw why, I gasped myself. Dash was wearing a stunning cyan dress. Her mane was styled very nicely and her makeup was really subtle. In a word? She was stunning. Behind her, Princess Luna walked, taking Dash right beside me. As they reached me, I whispered to Dash:

"You look beautiful! And I thought girly things were not for you. You should dress like this more often."

"Thanks" she said, her blush becoming a little visible. We turned to face Celestia as the music stopped and Luna and John stood behind us. Celestia cleared her throat and said:

"Good evening, mareladyes and gentlecolts. Today, in this beautiful day of summer, we are here to unite two destinies forever. Two creatures that had brought us all such happiness and joy, but most important, peace. If there is anyone against this wedding, may he or she speak now, or remain silent forever." No one talked, they all just looked at us.

"Good. Now, Daniel Zerk, do you take this fair mare to become your wife, and go with her through good and bad, no matter the situation, until death will do you apart?" Celestia continued.

"I do" I answered.

"If you have any vows you would like to make, please say them" Celestia added. I nodded, kneeled before Dash and looked at her.

"Rainbow Dash, since the moment I fell through the sky and woke up in your home, I knew that I had some feelings for you. You just saved me back then, and I am still thankful to that. Over the short time I had been here, we grew closer, my feelings became love and because of that we are now here, in front of the entire Equestria and our fellow goblins. So, in front of all this ponies and goblins, I swear to you on my life that I will love you eternally, no matter what comes upon us. And, if by any chance, you get in a dangerous situation, like the one in this war, then I would go to any lengths… and I mean it…ANY at all to save you, because you are and will always be my love" I said as I stood up. The crowd smiled wider and I saw even some tears falling. I saw even John shedding a couple.

'Now, Johnny, I hope those are many tears?' I told him, surprising him. He nodded and responded.

'As manly as they get.'

"Rainbow Dash, do you take this fair human man to be you husband and to go with him through good and bad, and love each other until death will do you apart?" Celestia asked.

"I do" Dash said with a smile.

"If you have any vows, now is the time" Celestia said. Dash turned to me and said:

"Daniel, as you said, from that moment when I saved you, I felt a spark, but I didn't know it back then. That is why, in front of the two races of ponies and goblins, I make the same vows as you, and I will stand by them, no matter what may come upon us." The crowd was even more teary by now.

"I now declare Daniel Zerk, Leader of Knights of Truth, dragon-born and friend of Equestria and Rainbow Dash, Knight of Truth and friend of Equestria, husband and wife. Daniel, you may kiss the bride" Celestia finished and I looked at Dash and we shared the sweetest, most passionate kiss until now. The crowd erupted with cheers and white rose petals began raining from the sky. We walked towards the front of the crowd where all our friends congratulated us.

"Now, if anyone has any speeches for the newly wed, I ask them to come on the stage. After the speeches are done, it is time for a party" Celestia said with a grin this time.

John walked to the stage and took out the scroll that he was reading earlier. The crowd settled and John began:

"Daniel Zerk. I am very impressed by your abilities until now. When I first met you, you seemed just a normal human, but since then, you became much more than that. You became a very good friend of mine. You saved my life a couple of times and I want to thank you for being my friend, saving me, saving Equestria and the goblins. Rainbow Dash, you are indeed a very lucky girl to have him as your husband. You, and I talk about the crowd also, have not the faintest idea how much Daniel loves. I've seen the power of will he has when he was training with me. This boy mastered in a week what others mastered in years so that he could save you, Rainbow Dash. Don't ever think for a second that this love will fade, no matter how harsh his actions will be, with him or with those around him. He will always do what it he can to keep you safe, even if this means he has to put his life on the line. So, as you all can see, he is pretty reckless, so he needs you Rainbow Dash to keep him safe from himself. Just joking on the last part. May you two be happy and live long lives" John concluded.

The crowd stomped in applauds and john bowed. He then came towards us.

"Nice John. Very nice. And…thanks" I said.

"Yeah, thanks John" Dash added.

"No problem" he said with a smile. Just then, Pagon, the leader of the goblin delegation, went on stage and said:

"Congratulations Daniel and Rainbow Dash. Now for my speech…as you all probably know, I am here as a representative of the goblin race. When this war began, I heard some rumors regarding a brilliant Knight of Truth. And, being forced to serve Morbidius, he sent me here in Canterlot to assassinate him. The faith makes it that he wasn't here when I came and I got captured. The next day from my capture, I got the chance to meet said Knight for the first time. And what a visit it was from Daniel. I refused to answer his questions, not giving belief to the rumors that I have heard. But, when he broke into my mind to get details on our plans, without harming me in any way and after getting what he needed, thanked me, my beliefs started to change. The spell Morbidus had on me, and on all his assassins for that matter, broke for me. I began thinking about what have I done and what have I been sent to do. At that point, my beliefs completely changed, when a fellow goblin under the spell of Morbidus came in Canterlot to get Princess Luna and he refused to let me go. That last piece of the puzzle clicked in place and I realized who was the real enemy and who were the ones that wanted the greater good. And all thanks to being randomly selected. So, to get to the point, I want to thank Daniel and Rainbow Dash for their help, compassion and understanding when it came to the situation of the goblin race and mine. May your lives be long, full of love and great opportunities."

"I want to thank you for helping us and for coming here today" I said and I began clapping. The ponies clapped the way they could and then Twilight went on the stage:

"I am the last to hold a speech. Rainbow Dash, congratulations on finally finding a suitable partner for you. I and all your friends are very happy for you. And your choice is the best you could have made. Daniel is a capable man that can protect you and care for you. He even went for you on the other side and I know no one that had ever done that before, and that says something. I and I think I speak on the behalf of all the pony race, wish you a life like in fairytales and all the happiness and the love that you two want and deserve. Long live the new couple!" she cried as she exited the stage. The crowd erupted once more. After they stopped, The Jammers went on the stage. Chordan took the mic and said:

"First of all…Congrats Daniel and Rainbow Dash. We could see this coming from the moment you became Knights, but, man, it took some time to get to it… although I heard it was not your choice. Me and the boys are honored to be here and thank both of you for being a great support and inviting us at every of your parties. And now...ponies and goblins, are you all ready to rock?! In honor of Daniel and the wedding, we are bringing fresh tunes from the human world this time. And, since we are all here to feel our best, we will give all of you ten minutes to prepare for the party, so go get your drinks and then we will start."

Ten minutes later when everyone had their drinks and, looking at the sun, you could guess it was almost seven in the evening, Chordan said again:

"Now, it is time to get this party started. And since it is a wedding, we first invite the groom to sing us something. Daniel, if you will…"

I nodded, let Dash astounded for a second and went to the stage. I grabbed the mic and looked at the guys.

"Dashie, my love, this song is for you" I said as I looked her straight in the eyes.

"Ready? And a one, and a two…." Chordan said and he began the lead guitar. As soon as the rhythm was right, I smiled at Dash and began singing:

_"I never had no one I could count on,_  
><em> I've been let down so many times,<em>  
><em> I was tired of hurtin',<em>  
><em> So tired of searchin',<em>  
><em> 'Til you walked into my life,<em>  
><em> It was a fellin' I'd never known,<em>  
><em> And for the first time I didn't feel alone.<em>

_You're more than a lover,_  
><em> There could never be another,<em>  
><em> To make me feel the way you do,<em>  
><em> Oh, we just get closer,<em>  
><em> I fall in love all over,<em>  
><em> Every time I look at you,<em>  
><em> I don't know where I'd be,<em>  
><em> Without you here with me,<em>  
><em> Life with you makes perfect sense,<em>  
><em> You're my best friend,<em>  
><em> You're my best friend, oh yeah.<em>

_You stand by me,_  
><em> And you believe in me,<em>  
><em> Like nobody ever has,<em>  
><em> When my world goes crazy,<em>  
><em> You're right there to save me,<em>  
><em> You make me see how much I have,<em>  
><em> And I still tremble when we touch,<em>  
><em> And oh the look in your eyes,<em>  
><em> When we make love.<em>

_You're more than a lover,_  
><em> There could never be another,<em>  
><em> To make me feel the way you do,<em>  
><em> Oh, we just get closer,<em>  
><em> I fall in love all over,<em>  
><em> Every time I look at you,<em>  
><em> I don't know where I'd be,<em>  
><em> Without you here with me,<em>  
><em> Life with you makes perfect sense,<em>  
><em> You're my best friend,<em>  
><em> You're my best friend.<em>

_You're more than a lover,_  
><em> There could never be another,<em>  
><em> To make me feel the way you do,<em>  
><em> Oh, we just get closer,<em>  
><em> I fall in love all over,<em>  
><em> Every time I look at you,<em>  
><em> I don't know where I'd be,<em>  
><em> Without you here with me<em>  
><em> Life with you makes perfect sense,<em>  
><em> You're my best friend,<em>  
><em> You're my best friend."<em>

As I ended the song, I could see a tear falling from her eye so, I jumped from the stage and kissed her. The crowd erupted again. Before we could all recover from the cheering, Chordan was at the mic again and said:

"Lovely song. Thank you Daniel for sharing all of this with the entire Equestria. Now, you aren't the only one that wanted to make a dedication to Dash. Let's all cheer for our next singer. John Night!"

Just then I saw John going on the stage. You could see he had some anxiety in him. His hoof trembled a little when he grabbed the mic, but steadied the next second.

"Daniel, Rainbow Dash, this one is dedicated to you two and your undying love" he said before Chordan started playing the lead guitar. John cleared his voice and then began:

_"I've been a walking heartache,_  
><em> I've made a mess of me,<em>  
><em> The person that I've been lately,<em>  
><em> Ain't who I wanna be but,<em>  
><em> You stay here right beside me,<em>  
><em> Watch as the storm blows through,<em>  
><em> And I need you cuz…<em>

_God gave me you for the ups and downs,_  
><em> God gave me you for the days of doubt,<em>  
><em> For when I think I've lost my way,<em>  
><em> There are no words here left to say, it's true,<em>  
><em> God gave me you.<em>  
><em> Gave me you.<em>

_There's more here than what we're seeing,_  
><em> A divine conspiracy<em>  
><em> That you, an angel lovely,<em>  
><em> Could somehow fall for me,<em>  
><em> You'll always be love's great martyr,<em>  
><em> And I'll be the flattered fool,<em>  
><em> And I need you.<em>

_God gave me you for the ups and downs,_  
><em> God gave me you for the days of doubt,<em>  
><em> For when I think I've lost my way,<em>  
><em> There are no words here left to say, it's true,<em>  
><em> God gave me you.<em>  
><em> Gave me you.<em>

_On my own I'm only,_  
><em> Half of what I could be,<em>  
><em> I can't do without you.<em>  
><em> We are stitched together,<em>  
><em> And what love has tethered,<em>  
><em> I pray we never undo.<em>

_God gave me you for the ups and downs,_  
><em> God gave me you for the days of doubt,<em>  
><em> God gave me you for the ups and downs,<em>  
><em> God gave me you for the days of doubt,<em>  
><em> For when I think I've lost my way,<em>  
><em> There are no words here left to say, it's true,<em>  
><em> God gave me you.<em>  
><em> Gave me you.<em>  
><em> He gave me you."<em>

When he finished, all the crowd cheered and he himself was very happy, but both me and Dash were stunned. We had no idea he was a singer. He got down from the stage and came towards us.

"So? What do you think?" he asked.

"I never took you for a singer" I said with a grin.

"And I thought I was the one to be surprised by my singing" he commented.

We shared a moment of laughing, until we saw none other but Celestia climb on the stage and go to the mic. The crowd stopped cheering, not knowing what to expect.

"Daniel and Rainbow Dash. Again, I congratulate you two for getting this far. And, as the others before me, I am going to dedicate a song to your eternal love. I hope you will like it" she said and the crowd erupted once more. The band nodded and Joshua started a slow tune with the piano. Celestia looked at the crowd and then at us and began:

_"Hearth beats fast,_  
><em> Colors and promises,<em>  
><em> How to be brave,<em>  
><em> How can I love when I'm afraid to fall,<em>  
><em> But watching you stand alone,<em>  
><em> All of my doubt,<em>  
><em> Suddenly goes away somehow,<em>  
><em> One step closer…<em>

_I have died everyday waiting for you,_  
><em> Darling don't be afraid,<em>  
><em> I have loved you,<em>  
><em> For a thousand years…<em>  
><em> I'll love you for a thousand more…<em>

_Time stands still,_  
><em> Beauty in all she is,<em>  
><em> I will be brave, I will not let anything take away,<em>  
><em> What's standing in front of me,<em>  
><em> Every breath, every hour has come to this…<em>  
><em> One step closer…<em>

_I have died everyday waiting for you,_  
><em> Darling don't be afraid,<em>  
><em> I have loved you,<em>  
><em> For a thousand years…<em>  
><em> I'll love you for a thousand more…<em>

_All along I believed I would find you,_  
><em> Time has brought your hearth to me,<em>  
><em> I have loved you for a thousand years,<em>  
><em> I'll love you for a thousand moooooooooore…<em>

_One step closer…_  
><em> One step closer…<em>

_I have died everyday waiting for you,_  
><em> Darling don't be afraid,<em>  
><em> I have loved you,<em>  
><em> For a thousand years…<em>  
><em> I'll love you for a thousand more…<em>

_All along I believed I would find you,_  
><em> Time has brought your hearth to me,<em>  
><em> I have loved you for a thousand years,<em>  
><em> I'll love you for a thousand moooooooooore…"<em>

As soon as the instrumental finished, the crowd erupted once more and both me and Dash beamed with joy.

"Thank you, Princess Celestia for the great song. I am sure all Equestria enjoyed this one. Now, let's get this party started" I said as I nodded towards Chordan, while I used magic to change everyone in party clothes. All the crowd gasped, but Chordan said:

"Thanks for the redressing of the entire party, Daniel. Now, let's start this!" He began playing some rock song and the party started. The whiskey and cider flowed like water, the food melted like ice in a hot summer day, and the time passed in a breath.

**-While the party was going on outside, inside the castle, in Luna's room-**  
>Luna was on her bead, looking at John as he was humming reading a scroll, before starting to get his suit out.<p>

"Don't you think they will notice that we are missing?" Luna asked with a smile.

"Hmm…no. Besides, Daniel is too busy to notice us leaving. And I have a hunch that he knows we left and is not bothered by this" John said as he laid beside Luna in his shirt and pants.

"If you say so, than it might be like that, but my sister will notice" Luna said tracing circles with her hoof in his mane.

"I am not worried about your sister. She won't bother us" John said with a smile, as he moved his hoof across Luna's face.

"So what were you humming earlier?" Luna asked, giving a small peck to his hoof, still keeping her mystical smile. John smiled and, after closing his eyes for a couple of seconds, he opened them and began singing:

_"You've got that smile,_  
><em> That only heaven can make,<em>  
><em> I pray to God every day,<em>  
><em> That you keep that smile.<em>  
><em> Yeah, you are my dream,<em>  
><em> There's not a thing I won't do,<em>  
><em> I'll give my life up for you,<em>  
><em> Cuz you are my dream.<em>

_And baby, everything that I have is yours,_  
><em> You will never go cold or hungry,<em>  
><em> I'll be there when you're insecure,<em>  
><em> Let you know that you're always lovely,<em>  
><em> Girl, cuz you are the only thing that I got right now.<em>  
><em> One day when the sky is falling,<em>  
><em> I'll be standing right next to you,<em>  
><em> Right next to you.<em>  
><em> Nothing will ever come between us,<em>  
><em> Cuz I'll be standing right next to you,<em>  
><em> Right next to you.<em>

_You had my child,_  
><em> You make my life complete,<em>  
><em> Just to have your eyes on little me,<em>  
><em> That'd be mine forever.<em>

_And baby, everything that I have is yours,_  
><em> You will never go cold or hungry,<em>  
><em> I'll be there when you're insecure,<em>  
><em> Let you know that you're always lovely,<em>  
><em> Girl, cuz you are the only thing that I got right now.<em>  
><em> One day when the sky is falling,<em>  
><em> I'll be standing right next to you,<em>  
><em> Right next to you.<em>  
><em> Nothing will ever come between us,<em>  
><em> Cuz I'll be standing right next to you,<em>  
><em> Right next to you.<em>

_ We're made for one another. Me and you,_  
><em> And I have no fear, I know we'll make it through.<em>

_One day when the sky is falling,_  
><em> I'll be standing right next to you.<em>  
><em> One day when the sky is falling,<em>  
><em> I'll be standing right next to you,<em>  
><em> Right next to you.<em>  
><em> Nothing will ever come between us,<em>  
><em> I'll be standing right next to you,<em>  
><em> Right next to you.<em>  
><em> Stand by my side.<em>  
><em> When the sky falls, I'll be there.<em>

_You've got that smile,_  
><em> That only heaven can make,<em>  
><em> I pray to God every day,<em>  
><em> To keep you forever."<em>

"Oh, John. I never knew you had such a lovely voice" Luna said as she buried her face in his neck.

"I do when I want to" John said as he caressed her mane. She raised her head enough to look him in the eyes.

"I guess Daniel is a good thing for all of us" she said winking at him. John's face grew a little red, as he said:

"Well, I got to give him credit for showing me the right way and knowing in an instant what kind of person I was. I tell you, he will go far, as long as he doesn't get himself in a bad situation like that one he gone through." Luna sighed and said:

"You haven't changed a bit. And yet you are different, full of surprises…and that's why I love you." She then buried her head back into his shoulder. John kissed her head and said:

"Now, what kind of wizard would I be if I hadn't had a couple of tricks up my sleeve."

"I was mistaken…you changed a little" Luna said.

"How so?" John asked very curious.

"Your jokes got better" Luna said chuckling in his shoulder. John rolled his eyes and embraced her closer, trying to show her the wholeness of his feelings with that hug.

The rest of the night, they spent talking, joking and enjoying each other's company as much as they could, since in three days, starting from tomorrow, John will be leaving for the goblin city to find out more about his dark apprentice, Ludvic.

**-Back in the garden, about ten to midnight-**

"And another one for the lovely couple we have" Spike said drinking another glass of cider. He tumbled forward, obviously tipsy from so many drinks. The only two persons that were more or less awake because they had the duty to take care of the guests were me and Dash.

"Hey Dash, don't give him another glass" I said as she brought Spike another glass since he asked nicely.

"Oh come on. Let him have fun" Dash said laughing and being merry. I sighed and said:

"Fine. But if anything happens, it was Rarity that gave him the drinks." Dash nodded and said:

"I like the way you are thinking. I wonder what other things are you having in mind."

"Oh, trust me, you will find soon enough" I said as I grabbed her hoof and we walked towards Celestia, who herself was kind of tipsy.

"We are going to retreat for tonight. Could you please make sure no one will disturb us?" I asked, giving her another glass of whiskey this time.

"Oh, sure. Go…go on" she said as she drunk the glass in one fluid motion. I chuckled and we and Dash went to the stage. We waited for Chordan to finish his song, before I took the mic and said:

"Everyone, please listen. I want to thank all of you for being here for the two of us today and this night. I want to also thank Gladir and the other Knights of Truth that made sure all of this was possible, since they ensured everything is right and no one disturbs this great party. Have a merry night and keep it up until the morning! The party is yours to lead, Chordan! Make them feel the rock!"

"Will do, my friend!" Chordan said as he began another rock song.

'It was a pleasure to be here for you two, for all of us' Gladir said as his form appeared in front of everyone. He bowed, with all the other Knights behind him and then disappeared.

I waved one last time to the crowd, who cheered, before me and Dash went inside the castle, to our room, where we won't be disturbed.

**-XxX-**

After we went inside, I slowly closed the door and then turned to see Dash on the bed. She was trying to get the dress off, but she couldn't open the zip. I smiled, undressed so that I was only in my shirt and said:

"Need some help with that dress, my princess?" Her smile was seductive and the gleam in her eyes told me all I needed to know. Nonetheless, she said:

"Hmm…I guess you can help me take this off my knight in shining armor." I came closer and slowly undid the zip. When it was done, Dash said:

"Now, turn around and don't peek." I did turn around and peeked a little to see her undressing.

"Dany, I said don't peek" she said laughing and I turned around, looking away. After a couple of seconds, two hooves were put around my neck and taking me to the bed. After I sat down, Dash put her hooves on my back and began massaging it.

"Oh Dany, you seem tense. Let me help you with this…" Dash said as he massaged harder. I sighed in relaxation. I felt her breathing on my neck.

"Mmmmmm…you smell nice. What do you say we get this shirt off. It is too hot in here" she whispered as she started undoing my buttons. When the shirt was off, she went back to massaging for some time.

"Oh, this feels good" I said completely relaxed.

"You know what feels better? A wing massage. Be sweet and morph into dragon" Dash said as I shrugged and did.

"Oh! Shiny!" she said as she began kissing the scales on my back.

"Hahaha, that tickles" I said in a whisper.

"Oh, so you are ticklish" Dash said as she breathed on my neck again. I laughed and grabbed her and put her in front of me. She whelped and I began massaging her back.

"You don't smell bad either" I whispered in her ear. I could feel her cheeks growing a little warmer and she turned around completely and locked me in a passionate kiss. I could feel her tongue searching for access, so I opened my snout a bit. While my tongue was hungrily exploring her mouth, I felt her hooves pushing me ever so slightly on my back, while she made the kiss deeper. Moments like this made our love seem so much more surreal. But, as in every love, lust is always present. And we decided that this time, nothing was going to stop us.

When I was flatly on my back, she broke the kiss briefly, to give me a sweet smile, before turning around to face my dragonhood (dragon form, remember?), which was already standing proud.

"Hmm… you are bigger than before" she said with a smile.

"If you want, I can go back in human form" I said, not wanting to do something that might hurt her.

"No, no, no… I accept this challenge. Plus, I always enjoyed more…exotic…things" she said seductively, as she blew hot air with every word over my tip. I moaned a little, since it felt really good. She looked at me and smiled her usual, mysterious smile that meant nothing was going to stop her now. Without any further movement, she took my tip into her mouth and began sucking slowly. I moaned a little louder than before, and then I noticed something. Dash's rear was right in my face and her tail was raised so I got an awesome sight. I grinned, and without a moment's notice, I used my now serpentine tongue to taste her juices. She yelped in pleasure and said after a couple of moments:

"Don't stop, Daniel."

That is all I needed. With all the skill and flexibility I had in my tongue, I began exploring her flower like a butterfly, looking for the bitter-sweet nectar of gods. She began moaning louder, the vibrations of her mouth on my dragonhood making me moan too. She began going faster and faster, taking more of it in her mouth. After a couple of minutes, her back legs started to tremble a little and I could tell she was close to her climax, so I sped up a little. With a loud moan, her walls closed around my tongue and the bitter-sweet nectar of gods was released. The strong and potent aroma that Dash's juices had, made me unable to hold it back any longer and I climaxed in her mouth. She swallowed all of it, and then turned to face me.

"And now, for the main course…" she said her smile never falling. With great care, she aligned her entrance with my dragonhood. She was about to descend a little, when I stopped her:

"Dash, are you sure you want this? There will be no going back."

"Dany, Dany, Dany, I want this as much as you do. Now, let me keep that rambling mouth of your busy" she said as she kissed me deeply. I closed my eyes in bliss and kissed her with more passion. I could feel her slowly descending on my dragonhood. I decided to take measures, so I turned her on her side, and I turned myself on the side, so that I was able to reach farther inside her. After a couple more centimeters, I reached a barrier. I looked Dash in the eyes, and she nodded, closing them. I kissed her deeply as I powerfully thrust. I broke her hymen and I saw a couple of tears fall from her eyes. I deepened the kiss even more and she relaxed. With great care, I began pulling back a little before thrusting back inside. After a couple of thrust, she opened her eyes and you could see that the pain has subsided and was replaced by pure pleasure. I no time we had a rhythm going and Dash met each of my thrusts with a downward move, increasing the pleasure for both of us. After a time, I began speeding it up a little. She began moaning louder.

"Ah…fa…faster…Da…Daniel" she managed to say between moans.

I sped up even more, going as fast as I could. After a couple of more minutes, I said:

"Dash….I….am getting….closer."

"Me…me too. Do…don't pull out" she managed to say before she gave me another deep kiss, more passionate than all before. With a shudder, she climaxed, her walls trapping my dragonhood. In that moment, it was too much for me and I climaxed too. It lasted the better part of a couple of minutes. In our sanctuary however, we were not done. We were still watching the fireworks show that burst the moment we climaxed.

We opened our eyes and we could see the reflections of each other. I pulled out and morphed back in human form. She moved her head closer to mine and whispered:

"I love you Daniel!"

"I love you too, Dash! Never forget this" I said as I kissed her on the forehead. And with that we fell asleep, too tired to even talk anymore. We met under the pine tree in our sanctuary and we enjoyed each other company and talked about what will be the next chapter in our lives.

**Aaaaand... scene!**

**This concludes the first book of The Zerk Chronicles. I want to thank all of my readers for leaving me their reviews and opinions, for providing help when I needed it ( ) and for reading my first fanfic. Thank you all. As usual, don't forget to review, and don't worry if you are much after the date I completed this story, I will answer in a PM to any review ( If you are guest, check my profile for answers and you might wanna post with a name in case of more guest posts).**

**The song that gave the title of this chapter is "A thousand years" by Christina Perri. (see **HYBRID BATTLESHIP INFINITY210** , I told you I will use it eventually :)) )**

**There have been many other songs in this chapter and here are their names:**

**"My best friend" by Tim McGraw.**

**"God gave me you" by Blake Shelton**

**"Next to you" by Chris Brown ft. JB (I know what you think, but I don't listen to JB and the only song I like in which he sings is this one in which he ft.'s.)**

**Thank you once more for reading my story and for reviews. I would like to mention that this story started as a random idea (and because my favorite pony in Equestria is Rainbow Dash) and has been written only at night (that is when good ideas come, at least for me) between 1 and 4 AM Local time. I say that a story written when I should be sleeping makes this story more important to me :))). Returning to serious matters though, a sequel to this story will come, but not in the next 3 months at least(or who knows, if I have time…). I am busy with finishing my Rio story and other summer stuff. I don't know the title yet, but I would make it available on my profile as soon as I have it. Also, if anyone has any form of artwork that they think would fit well as a cover for this series (and not only), please send me a PM with a link to it, and maybe it will become the cover of it :D**

**To the ones that also read my Rio story, I'll start the next chapter soon so don't become impatient :))**

**I think that is all :D**

**Thank you once more for support and reviews. Cya :D**

**Until next time, LionPrankster, over and out.**


	24. Final AN

Okay guys and girls, with this AN, the first book of The Zerk Chronicles ends. I, however, just posted some hours ago, the Prologue to the second book of this series. It is called The Zek Chronicles 2 - The connection. Look it up and tell me what you think :D 


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